The Secret Raid
by AliasCWN
Summary: The Rat Patrol is assigned a mission where secrecy is more important than anything else, or is it?
1. Chapter 1

**The Secret Raid**

By: AliasCWN

Chapter 1

"So you see Sergeant, it's very important that the Germans don't realize we know anything about these tests. It is essential that you are not spotted anywhere near that base or the test fields."

"So get in, get the results, and get out without the Germans knowing we were ever there?"

"That's right Sergeant. It won't be easy; the Germans are extremely determined to keep all of this a secret."

"Are we going to be flying in?"

"No, that isn't possible." Major Wallis from G-2 explained. "It has been decided that it would be better if you drove your jeeps there."

"Excuse me Major," Moffitt interrupted, "but that is over three hundred miles inside of the German lines."

"That's correct Sergeant." The Major acknowledged.

"How does headquarters expect us to drive that far without being spotted at all?"

"I don't know Sergeant Moffitt, but Captain Boggs tells me that if anyone can do it, it's your unit. He has quite a bit of confidence in your abilities. What if you drove at night?" The major suggested.

"Night driving is risky." Troy growled.

"So is driving during the day." The major countered. "The Germans are going to be keeping a close eye on that entire area."

"There is less chance of being spotted at night." Captain Boggs agreed.

"And a lot more chance of damaging a jeep out in the middle of nowhere." Troy clarified.

"That's a chance we will have to take." The major answered in a sharper tone.

"Excuse me sir."

The major looked over at Hitch as if he had forgotten that the privates were there. "What is it Private?" His tone was abrupt as he waited to hear Hitch's objections to the mission.

"How are we going to get supplies Sir? We won't have enough room in our jeeps to carry enough to get us there and back without resupplying."

"How much more room do you think you'll need?"

"It will take us nearly a week just to get to the target." Troy began to do the math out loud. "Another week to get back, although we might be able to cut a day or so off of that by traveling during the day when we get close to home."

"We don't want you seen coming from that direction either." The major insisted.

"We could make a detour to make it look like we are coming from a different direction." Moffitt suggested.

"I don't like it." Major Wallis shook his head. "It's too risky. The most important part of this mission is the secrecy."

"All right," Troy nodded, "then we are looking at two weeks minimum, probably more."

"That's going to require a lot of supplies." Hitch repeated. "Especially gas and water."

"You won't be able to use the regular water holes." Major Wallis explained. "Jerry has patrols stationed at every one of them."

"We're gonna need another jeep." Tully added quietly.

"What's wrong with the ones you have?" The major asked in surprise. "Captain Boggs tells me they are the best kept jeeps in North Africa."

"Nothing." Tully answered as everyone turned to look at him. "But if we had a third jeep we could carry more supplies."

"That means another driver." Captain Boggs answered thoughtfully. "Do you have someone in mind?"

"No, we wouldn't necessarily need another driver." Moffitt replied with sudden understanding. "If we are going to stay out of sight we wouldn't need two men to a jeep. We could load the extra jeep with the extra supplies and one of us could drive it."

"Would that give you enough room?" The major asked with interest.

Tully looked at Hitch and both of them did some quick mental calculations. Hitch was the first to nod.

"I think we could fit it all in if we use all three jeeps. We would need to leave enough room in our regular jeeps to fight if things go bad." Hitch looked at Tully for his opinion.

"It would be tight but I think we could do it." Tully agreed.

"You have it." Major Wallis declared. "You also have free rein on any supplies you think you'll need."

Troy glanced at Moffitt and nodded. "We'll work up a list and get it to you."

"Give it to my clerk and he'll type up all of the requisition forms for you." Captain Boggs ordered.

"Our spies say that the Germans are worried about your unit specifically when they talk about the secrecy of this project." The major warned Troy. "Your reputation has preceded you. They will be watching for you in particular."

"Do we know who is in charge of the tests?" Troy asked.

"A Major Hermann Koft." The major replied. "He was recently promoted from Hitler's armored forces in eastern Europe. That seems to suggest that this new weapon may be some kind of armor or possibly a new type of tank. We haven't been able to determine its true nature yet. That will be part of your job. We just don't have enough information to tell what we are dealing with here."

"When are these tests supposed to be taking place?" Moffitt questioned.

"They are supposed to start in less than a week." The major answered. "We have no idea how long they will continue. Our spies say they should last three or four days at least but that is only a guess. That's why it's so important that you leave as soon as possible."

"We'll stock the jeeps and head out this afternoon." Troy decided.

"Not in daylight Sergeant." The major objected.

"If, as you say, they are worried about us in particular you can be certain that they will have their spies watching us. If we just disappear they will be suspicious." Moffitt warned.

"That's why we need to leave in daylight." Troy agreed. "They need to see us leave. It has to look like a normal patrol. They'll report our departure to their contacts."

"They'll also tell them which way you go." The major frowned.

Troy smiled. "We'll head out in a southwestern direction for a while until we're sure we're not being followed." He explained. "Once we're sure we're clear we'll find a place to hide until dark. After dark we'll circle and head north toward our target."

"They might wonder about that third jeep." Captain Boggs pointed out.

"We won't have a third jeep Captain." Troy explained. "We'll leave you a list of things to load into that jeep before we go. Don't load the jeep until after we leave. Once you get it loaded have a driver drop it off at an abandoned barn east of here." Troy went to the map and pointed out the spot he meant. "Have him park it in the barn and leave. We'll be watching to be sure he's not followed. Once we're sure it's all clear we'll pick up the jeep and head out. Even if the drivers talk they won't know anything. They can guess all they want but they won't know for sure."

"That might work." Captain Boggs admitted. "I have a couple of men who can deliver the jeep. They're trustworthy and won't talk if I tell them to keep quiet."

"May I suggest a different approach Sir?" Moffitt asked.

"Such as?" Major Wallis asked.

"Perhaps we could make it look as if the drivers are stealing the supplies to sell on the black market. It happens; perhaps we could use it to our advantage."

Troy grinned. "That's a good idea."

Captain Boggs looked at Major Wallis and nodded. "I can arrange that. We could even arrest the men for theft and ask them where they hid the supplies. They could refuse to answer and the MPs could haul them away where no one would be able to question them. It could all be done very publically."

"Do it!" Major Wallis ordered without any hesitation.

"On it sir." Captain Boggs called to his aide and asked him to find the men he wanted and have them come to his office discreetly.

The major turned to Troy. "Make your list and get it to Captain Boggs." The major ordered. "I'll expect you to leave this afternoon, early."

"Yes sir," Troy nodded, "we'll get on it right away."

"I'll expect you back here in approximately two weeks." The major rose and signaled that the meeting had come to an end.

"Yes sir."

"One more thing Sergeant."

Troy turned expectantly and waited.

"You will maintain complete radio silence. You're on your own out there; if you run into trouble we won't be able to do anything to help you."

The room got quiet at the statement. Troy looked at his men and saw his own thoughts reflected in their eyes; they were expendable.

"Understood sir." Troy turned and led his men from the office.

"Do you really think they can pull this off?" Major Wallis asked Captain Boggs.

"If they can't do it I don't think it can be done." Captain Boggs answered.

"They asked intelligent questions and came up with solutions pretty quickly." The major admitted. "They were quick to point out the things that we missed in our rush to get this mission set up."

"They are flexible when it comes to plans." The captain explained. "They can change plans without a lot of talk too. I usually just give them the job and let them figure out how to do it. They don't need a lot of guidance."

"I can certainly see why you would feel that way." The major admitted. "I just hope they can live up to your faith in them."

"So do I." The captain admitted softly.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 2

"Hitch, Tully, go over the jeeps and make a list of the supplies we'll need for a normal two week patrol. Food, gas, ammunition, the usual."

Both privates nodded.

"Requisition a medical kit for the second jeep. We're going to be a long way from a hospital if any of us get hurt."

"What about the extra supplies?"

"Moffitt and I will take care of those. We'll make a list and we can compare notes before we turn them in. That way we won't miss anything or double up on anything we won't use. We won't have any space to spare." Hitch and Tully nodded. "I want anyone who looks at the jeeps to think we are going out on a normal patrol. No extra gas or water. We can probably forego most of the explosives though; I doubt we'll have a need for them on this trip."

"Got it Sarge."

"You've got an hour to finish. We'll meet back here, compare notes, and give the captain the lists. We'll catch a hot meal before we pick up the supplies. After lunch we'll load up the jeeps and get out of here in plain sight; heading southwest. From there we'll circle around to the old barn and set up an observation point."

"Sounds good Sarge." Hitch nodded.

"Get going."

When they were finished Troy dropped off the list for the third jeep with Captain Boggs. The list for the jeeps went to the captain's clerk. The supplies for their regular jeeps were ready for pickup when they finished their meals. The privates stocked the jeeps while the sergeants poured over their maps. They did everything they could to make it look like they were getting ready to go on a normal patrol.

When they left the base they headed out in a southwesterly direction. After a few miles they stopped to see if they were being followed.

Moffitt lowered the field glasses and turned to Troy. "I don't see anyone. I think we're clear."

"Just to be safe we'll head in this direction for another couple of miles. We'll start our swing east when we reach those low hills. They'll give us some cover if anyone is watching us."

Moffitt turned to scan the desert behind them again. There was still no sign of anyone else for miles. "Do you really think this will work Troy?"

Troy shrugged. "Do you mean the mission or heading southwest before turning north?"

"Both I guess."

Troy stared out at the desert before he answered. "I think they both have a pretty good chance of working. If Jerry had spies watching us it doesn't look like they followed us. We'll keep a sharp eye out when we change directions. I'll have Tully and Hitch stick to the hills as much as possible until we reach the abandoned barn. Once we pick up the other jeep we'll find a place to hide until dark. Traveling at night is not my favorite thing to do but it's the only thing that makes sense. The major's right, we'd be spotted driving during the daylight hours."

"Tully and Hitch don't like driving after dark."

"Yeah, I know, they're worried about the jeeps." Troy responded.

"True." Moffitt smiled but then he sobered. "But they're also worried that if a jeep is damaged we'll be stranded."

Troy turned to look at Moffitt. "That's not as big a risk as we usually face. This time instead of spare parts we have an entire spare jeep."

The British sergeant smiled. "Perhaps you should mention that to them."

"I'm not sure it would help." Troy replied with a smile. "They love those jeeps."

Moffitt laughed at the truth of the statement.

"Let's go." Troy ordered. "I want to reach the barn so we can look around before the other jeep gets there."

The barn sat alone at the base of a small line of hills. A house had stood close by at one time but it had been abandoned by the owners even before a tank crew decided to use it for target practice. All that remained of the house was a shattered foundation nearly buried in sand.

The barn was still standing but it had seen better days. Wind had torn the doors off their hinges and they hung precariously like broken wings. Sand had piled up against one side and the weight had pressed against the wall until the entire barn was leaning. Still, it was a sturdy structure and it had resisted the forces of nature to the point that it was still serviceable. The Rat Patrol had sheltered in it during a few storms when they were caught off the base. The roof leaked but it protected them from the wind and blowing sand.

Troy had the jeeps park out of sight with the privates guarding them while he and Moffitt watched the barn from the top of one of the hills. They had searched the desert around the barn and found no sign of any recent visitors. The two sergeants lay side by side and watched the surrounding desert with their field glasses.

"Here they come."

Two jeeps were approaching the barn from the direction of the base. Even from a distance they could tell that one of them was heavily loaded. Extra gas and water cans were strapped in the rear with boxes of other supplies packed into every space available.

There were only two men, one in each jeep. Troy and Moffitt watched as the driver of the packed jeep parked it in the barn. The driver came out, climbed into the second jeep without a backward glance, and they drove away. They headed in the direction of the base.

"I do believe that that is our cue to move in." Moffitt suggested as he rolled to his back.

"Not yet."

"Is something wrong?" Moffitt rolled onto his stomach again and focused his glasses on the barn. "I don't see anything." He panned the glasses over the desert but he didn't see anything to alarm him.

"Neither do I." Troy admitted. "I just want to wait a few minutes just to be sure."

"All right then. I guess there isn't any hurry to find a camp until dark."

"No, there isn't."

"Do you have a reason to believe that they may have been followed?"

"No."

"I see, or rather, I don't see, but I have no problem waiting for a bit. Shall I tell the lads to cover the jeeps?"

"No, we aren't going to wait that long. I don't know, I just have this feeling that we should wait a bit." Troy didn't take his eyes off of the barn and the surrounding area as he answered the other sergeant.

The British sergeant nodded thoughtfully. "I think I'll just run down and tell the lads that we're going to be here for a bit longer."

"Tell them to stay alert."

"Will do old man. I'll be right back. Call if you need me." Moffitt was talking to Tully when Troy called his name. He excused himself and ran up the hill to join the other sergeant. "What is it?"

"Someone was following the jeep." Troy pointed to a distant hill.

Three Arabs on horseback were cautiously following the tracks of the two jeeps. They rode slowly up to the barn and looked inside. One of them dismounted and went into the building. A minute later he came back out and spoke to his companions. He mounted his horse and the three of them rode off.

Moffitt didn't say anything until the Arabs disappeared in the distance. "They don't seem to be staying around to see if anyone comes for the jeep."

"It looks like Captain Boggs already started the rumor about the thefts of supplies from the base."

"Perhaps." Moffitt agreed. "That would explain their presence."

"Yeah it might." Troy growled. He got to his feet and started down the hill. "Tell Hitch and Tully to wait. I'm going to walk down and get the jeep. I don't want any other jeep tracks around that barn. We'll use the rakes and retrace the tracks we already made. We'll erase all of our tracks at the same time. I only want there to be one set of tracks leaving this area."

"That seems like it might be a wise precaution considering what just happened."

"I think we should send a message to Captain Boggs too."

"Troy, we were told to maintain radio silence."

"Once the mission starts." Troy argued.

"It has started."

"Technically it doesn't start until we turn north. Until then we are still trying to convince everyone that we are on a regular patrol, and we radio in on our regular patrols."

"Troy."

"We'll code it and word it so it sounds like we're working on the theft problem too. That would explain why we were watching the barn, and the jeep."

"Are you certain you want to chance it? We could just take the jeep and disappear like we planned."

Troy shook his head. "No, I think we need to warn the captain. If we do it now maybe the MPs can single out those Arabs when they re-enter the base. Maybe they can keep an eye on them."

"He may not agree with you about the radio."

"All right. How about this? We can radio in and pretend we are someone else. Just a patrol calling in a report. We'll have to word it just right so that Captain Boggs realizes who sent it and what we are trying to tell him."

Moffitt looked at where the Arabs had vanished and nodded. "All right, you may be right, the captain should know about this."

"I'll code a message when we get to a campsite. Keep your eyes open." He turned again and started for the barn. This time Moffitt didn't stop him. He made it to the barn and found the jeep inside. A quick check assured him that no one had messed with it before he started it up and drove to meet the others. He waved at Moffitt to indicate that he was going to go around the hill to join the privates.

Moffitt watched him go before searching the distant hills for any sign of the Arabs or any other unwelcome visitors. He stayed on the hill until Troy pulled the jeep in behind their regular jeeps. When he reached the jeeps Troy was already busy explaining the plan to cover their tracks to the privates.

"We'll find a place to hide and then send the message." Troy was saying as Moffitt climbed behind his 50. "Drop your rakes and erase your earlier tracks. I'll follow you so that my tracks are visible for a while then I'll go around you and you can erase everything at once. They won't know who took the jeep or where it went."

When they left Troy's tracks were the only ones visible. They headed south to start with and then turned east after Troy took the lead. Tully and Hitch erased all three sets of tracks and the trio of jeeps disappeared into the desert.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 3

"Did the captain acknowledge the message?"

Troy was lowering the antenna for the radio when Moffitt walked up next to him.

"Yeah, he got the message."

"Do you think he understood what you were trying to tell him?"

Troy looked over at Moffitt and smiled. "Yeah, I think he got the gist of it, and I think he realized who was sending it too."

"Did he seem upset about you breaking radio silence?"

"No, maybe he agrees that the mission doesn't officially start until we turn north. Right now we could still just be out on a regular patrol."

"And it would be normal for us to radio in on a regular patrol if we found anything that needed to be reported."

"At least I hope that's how he sees it. That message needed to be sent. He needed to know that the jeep was followed."

"But we weren't."

"I told him that too."

"They could have been after the stolen supplies. It's quite possible that they are planning on coming back for the jeep and what's in it before the imaginary thieves can sell them."

Troy flashed a bright smile. "In that case they're in for a real surprise."

"And if that is the case then it would seem that your precautions have most certainly paid off. If they are after the supplies they may have tried to follow the tracks of the jeep. This way they won't find any tracks and we weren't seen anywhere near the barn."

The Rat Patrol was hidden in a wadi miles from the old barn. They still hadn't turned north, Troy wanted to wait for darkness before he committed to changing directions. The jeeps were covered and they had a guard out to watch for danger while the rest of them ate and got some rest. Troy had sent the message to Captain Boggs while their meals were heating.

"Have you had time to map our route?"

Moffitt nodded. "We'll stick to the open desert at night and hide in the hills and wadis by day. Anyone camping for the night will want shelter so the open desert will be our safest route.

"Any roads heading that way?"

"A few, but I thought it best if we avoided them. There are a few places where we may have to travel on the road for a short distance, I'll let you know when we are getting close to those places. Did you want to use the roads?"

"That depends on how fast we can travel. We may not have a choice if we start falling behind on our timetable. We need to get to that base before the tests are completed. Somehow we're going to have to get a copy of the reports they plan to send to Berlin."

"I brought a camera and plenty of film."

"I hope we can use it. That base is going to be locked down tighter than a drum. We're going to have to figure out a way to get in, and out, unnoticed."

"You'll think of something." Moffitt's smile was full of confidence. "You always do."

"Huh! At this point I'm drawing a total blank."

"We aren't there yet. Once we get there and you have a chance to look around you'll come up with a plan."

Troy cocked his head to the side, a thoughtful look on his face. "I hope you're right."

"Just ask the lads, they'll tell you I'm right. They have full confidence in you too."

"Yeah, but they're too young to know any better." Troy growled.

"They've matured a great deal since you took them under your wing Troy. Don't make the mistake of underestimating them."

"I know, but they're still young."

"Yes they are," Moffitt smiled, "but they'll outgrow it."

Troy glanced at Moffitt in surprise and then laughed. Shaking his head, he turned toward the fire. "Come on, let's eat and then I'll relieve Tully on watch. The three of you will be doing the driving so you'll need the most rest. I can catch a nap while we're moving."

After eating Moffitt went to his bed while Troy went to relieve Tully on watch.

"Get something to eat and clean up after yourself." The sergeant ordered. "I'll stay on watch until it's time to leave."

"What about you Sarge? Don't you need some sleep too?"

"I'll sleep on the way. We're trying to avoid any contact so I should be able to get some rest."

Tully looked skeptical but he simply nodded and shifted his matchstick to the other side of his mouth.

"I'll wake you when it gets dark." Troy continued when Tully didn't move.

"What if you have to walk in front of the jeeps to guide us?"

"Then the walking with keep me awake." Troy grinned, unconcerned. "Either that or I can sleepwalk."

"Or you'll wake up when you trip and fall….if we don't run over you first." Tully drawled unhappily.

"Just don't run over me then." Troy answered. "Now go get some sleep."

Tully frowned but he did as he was told. Troy watched him take a plate of food before he smothered the fire. He knew Tully's concerns were legitimate but he had already debated the pros and cons of his plan in his head. It was important that they remain undetected, and that meant that the drivers had to stay alert. As a passenger his focus didn't need to be as sharp. That didn't mean that he didn't intend to watch for trouble, he did, but it was more important that the drivers maintain sharp reflexes so they could respond immediately to any danger. They might have to do some fast ducking to stay out of sight.

Traveling nearly three hundred miles across mostly enemy territory without being spotted would be difficult enough under normal circumstances, but these weren't normal circumstances. They knew the Germans were using extraordinary measures to maintain their security in anticipation of the Allies sending someone to infiltrate their testing grounds. He knew he was asking a lot from his men but he also knew they were up to the challenge. Moffitt had mapped out the route and he knew that the other sergeant would have taken all the known factors into consideration. He also knew that Moffitt would have taken precautions to minimize any dangers that unknown factors might cause. Taking risks was in their job description but none of them took anything for granted. Troy was sure that there would be more than enough risks to go around before the job was done.

He looked down at the quiet camp and noticed that the others were all asleep. Tully had policed the camp and turned in while he had been analyzing his decisions. Walking the perimeter of the camp, he took the precaution of checking the coverings on the jeeps from different angles. They hadn't seen any planes yet but you could never be too careful.

The hours dragged by and Troy second and third guessed every decision he had made up to this point. In the end he decided that he had done what he thought was best and he would just have to live with the consequences. So far they were still on schedule and undetected as far as they could tell. Of course, they hadn't really started yet, he told himself.

Troy glanced at the sun and decided to wake the others. If they hurried they would still have time to make a small fire and heat one more meal before they started driving through the cold night. He made a mental note to remind everyone to dress in the warm clothing they had brought with them. There would be no warm fires or blankets to wrap in for a good many nights ahead. He woke Hitch first and told him to wake the others while he got a fire started.

Hitch woke Moffitt first before moving on to Tully.

"It's not dark yet." Tully groaned as the sun hit his eyes.

"That's what I used to tell my nanny when she would send me to bed." Moffitt laughed as he crawled out of his own bed. "It didn't work for me and I sincerely doubt that you are going to have any better luck with it."

"Sarge wants another hot meal before we head out." Hitch explained. "He says it will help keep us warm."

"He is correct." Moffitt replied even though Hitch was talking to Tully. "It's going to be a long cold ride tonight and a hot meal is an excellent way to start off."

"That's what Sarge said." Hitch smirked. "Only with a lot less words."

"Great." Tully mumbled.

"Sarge did use more words than that." Hitch smiled as he turned away from Tully.

"Okay, okay, I'm getting up."

Hitch turned to stare at the other private. Usually Tully jumped right up and was instantly alert. He seldom complained about anything. "Is everything all right Tully?"

Tully's head whipped around at the question. "Sure, why wouldn't it be?" He looked fully awake as he stared at his friend.

"You just seem off somehow." Hitch answered with a shrug. He waited for Tully to explain.

"Look, I'm sorry I snapped at you. I guess I just didn't sleep too well."

Hitch continued to wait until Tully felt the need to continue.

"I had a disturbing dream." Tully mumbled in explanation.

"About what?"

"I don't know. I can't remember the details. I just know it left me feeling uneasy." Tully admitted.

Hitch nodded slowly. "I have those from time to time. I usually can't remember them either. I hate it when that happens."

"Well," Tully shook his head, "it was just a dream. We'd better eat. Sarge is going to want to leave as soon as it gets dark. I want to give my jeep one more check before we go."

"Me too." Hitch agreed. "If we're going to be driving all night I want to be sure she's running all right."


	4. Chapter 4

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 4

"I can't see a thing Sarge." Hitch was peering over the hood of his jeep trying to see where he was going. He had even foregone his goggles in favor of his glasses in hopes of improving his vision. Behind him Tully was nearly bumper to bumper as they crawled across the dark desert.

It was day four and they were behind schedule already. The first two nights had been clear enough that they had made good time but the sky was cloudy on the third night and they had barely crawled across the flat terrain. Now they were faced with the same problem.

"I'll walk ahead to guide you." Troy offered. They were moving so slowly that Hitch didn't even have to stop to let him out of the jeep. He grabbed a handhold on the dash and slid from the seat. The moment that his feet hit the ground he knew they were in trouble.

The sand beneath his boots was soft and loose. The loose sand was deep enough that it could cause the jeep to flounder. "Keep moving slowly, the sand is really soft right here." Troy warned Hitch. He turned to call back to Tully to warn him of the danger too.

Troy took another step and felt his foot slide. They were on the side of a small hill and the slope was steep. He tried to catch himself but he lost his footing and slid on his rear to the bottom of the slope. Hitch stopped his jeep as Troy disappeared down the incline. Tully's jeep bumped into Hitch's . Moffitt ran into the back of Tully's jeep in the dark.

Hitch looked around but didn't see the sergeant. "Hey Sarge, quit fooling around!" Hitch called as Troy surfed the sand.

"Who's fooling?" Troy called back. He tried to climb back up to the jeep but the sand beneath his feet kept slipping. "The sand is really soft here, keep the jeeps moving or you'll get stuck."

The private nodded and tried to get his jeep moving again. "Hey! It won't go!"

"Maybe Tully can push. He may have better traction than you." Troy suggested.

Tully tried to move but his wheels spun helplessly in the fine sand. He stopped trying when he felt the jeep start to slide sideways toward the slope.

"Tully, take your rope and tie it to Moffitt's. Moffitt can pull you back to solid ground. Hitch, just sit tight for now."

As soon as Tully had the two jeeps tied together Troy had Moffitt use his jeep to pull Tully to solid ground. Tully's jeep tipped precariously at one point but Tully's driving skills kept it level until they were out of danger of slipping.

Troy watched tight-lipped until the two jeeps were once again on hard packed sand.

Tully untied the rope from his rear bumper and tied it to his front bumper. Moving cautiously, he moved to the rear of Hitch's jeep. He tied the rope to the back bumper of the other jeep and moved out of the way. Moffitt climbed into Tully's jeep and began to pull Hitch backwards. Hitch's jeep had settled into the soft sand and resisted the pull at first. When it began to move they realized that the front wheels were turned slightly. The jeep began to turn toward the slope and Hitch hit the brakes to keep from following Troy to the bottom of the hill. Moffitt maneuvered his jeep to pull from another angle before he tried again. This time they managed to pull Hitch onto sand that would hold the jeep firmly.

Troy breathed a sigh of relief when all three jeeps were once again on solid ground. He glanced at his watch and frowned at the time.

"I'm afraid we lost some time here." Moffitt looked over at Troy and noticed his frown as he looked at the watch.

"It's going to be light soon." Troy agreed. "We need to find a place to hide for the day."

"There is a wadi about eight miles ahead, not large, but large enough. If it's empty we could hide there for the day." Moffitt reached for his map case to show Troy the wadi he meant.

"Forget the map." Troy waved him away. "Just lead the way; we need to get there before it starts to get light. We'll have to check it out before we go in. Is it close to any roads?"

"Not particularly. But it could be seen from the road."

"Okay." Troy nodded. "Let's get going. Maybe we can get some sleep before we wreck a jeep."

"Good." Hitch mumbled. "This night driving is wearing me out."

"It's wearing us all out." Troy growled. "And we're only halfway there. We're falling behind; if we can't make up the lost time we're going to be too late to get the information we need."

"There is a road we could possibly use." Moffitt suggested.

Troy looked over hopefully.

"It's an old caravan road. Heavy armor couldn't use it but our jeeps might be able to make it. It crosses the mountains close to where we need to go. We could save two, maybe three days."

"Why didn't you mention it before this?" Troy demanded.

"We aren't there yet and you said we needed to stay off the roads. I just assumed you meant all roads. We would have to travel the road the Germans use for several miles to reach the caravan road." Moffitt warned.

"I meant all roads." Troy admitted. "But we may have to make an exception."

"I'll take another look at the map once we get our camp set up. We may have to alter our course slightly to reach the caravan road."

"All right." Troy agreed. "But first we have to make sure that that wadi is empty."

Eight miles later they discovered that the wadi was not empty. A German patrol had chosen that same wadi to make their camp for the night.

Moffitt and Troy went in in the third jeep to check it out. If they were spotted Troy didn't want the Germans to see the distinctive 50 caliber machine gun mounted in the back of the regular jeeps. They parked half a mile away and walked to the wadi. The presence of the German patrol was a disappointment.

"What now?"

"Now we have to find another place to hole up for the day." Troy growled. "And we don't have much time to find it. It's going to be light soon." They withdrew to the jeep to consider the problem.

"Perhaps not." Moffitt answered thoughtfully.

Troy looked back at Moffitt to see him looking at the jeep with a serious frown. "Moffitt, we can't take out that patrol. They'd be missed and the krauts would be on the alert."

"They haven't seen us so there is no reason to take them out." Moffitt replied with a smile. "That wasn't what I meant."

"Then what are we talking about?"

Moffitt turned to focus on Troy. "What if we park the jeeps out in the open and camouflage them?"

"It wouldn't work. Anyone who saw them would recognize them for what they are."

"In the bright sun, yes, but maybe not in the early morning light." Moffitt argued. "If we put the morning sun behind us it would help with the subterfuge. We could stay away from the road to help too. We might be able to fool them."

"What if they come from the other direction?" Troy asked. "The sun would be at their backs."

"We wouldn't stay out there for long." Moffitt explained. "Once the wadi is clear we could move in there and wait for dark."

Troy stared at the jeep as he considered the idea. "We'd have to separate the jeeps. Three of them together would just draw attention." He finally answered.

"We don't want to be within sight of the wadi either." Moffitt added. "The guards have been staring out into the desert all night, they would notice any change in the landscape. Especially something as big as a jeep."

"Agreed."

"It's going to be light soon." Hitch called as the sergeant's returned. "Is it safe to go in?"

"No." Troy reported. "There's a German patrol camped there."

"What are we going to do?" Hitch asked in a worried tone.

"Moffitt has an idea, but it means we're going to have to split up."

"Maybe we'd better get to it then Sarge." Tully warned. "The sun is going to be coming up real soon."

Troy nodded, oddly reluctant to split his small force. "Okay, here's the deal." He began to explain Moffitt's idea. "So I want you two to take your jeeps and find some place to park. Choose carefully. We can't stay together but I want everyone to stay close enough that the others can come to your aid if you are spotted. We'll try to outrun them but we'll fight if we have to to survive. The rest of us won't show ourselves unless there is no other way. Any questions?"

Tully and Hitch looked at each other and shook their heads.

"All right, get moving, we don't have much time." Troy ordered.

Everyone jumped to take their jeeps and find a place to hide. Troy and Moffitt stayed together in the third jeep while Tully and Hitch took their jeeps out alone.

Troy and Moffitt found a small depression that partially hid the jeep from sight. Troy grabbed a shovel and dug furiously to make the depression deeper so that the jeep would appear to be even smaller to anyone seeing it. Moffitt shifted the load to dig out the camouflage net. He started to replace the supplies the way he found it until it occurred to him that the load would look a lot less conspicuous if it were piled haphazardly instead of boxlike. The square shape would look out of place under the netting. Looking at the supplies with a critical eye, he began to rearrange the boxes. They draped the netting over his finished arrangement just as the sun began to peek over the nearby mountain. They carefully pulled the netting around the vehicle to block any reflection from the sun and held it down with rocks scattered along the edge. While Troy finished placing the rocks Moffitt gathered tumbleweeds and brush to complete the impression they wanted to make.

Tully found a small group of rocks and parked behind them. He crowded as close as he could get and draped his netting over both the rocks and his jeep. The result was one large shape that completely hid the shape of the jeep. He added smaller rocks to make it look like one formation and to hold the netting in place until the night winds died down. He too used brush to help break up the outline and prevent reflections through the netting. Then he broke off some more brush to sweep away the tracks that the wind hadn't erased yet. He paused to look for the others but he couldn't see any of them.

Hitch couldn't find a depression or any rocks so he was forced to drive further than the others. He was ready to turn back and look elsewhere when he spotted a low hill that might work. The danger of leaving tracks had occurred to him earlier so he had dropped his rake to avoid having to deal with the problem. Even as he searched for a hiding place the night winds were filling in the rake marks. He parked along the base of the hill and angled the jeep for a quick getaway. Next he pulled a tarp from the back and wrapped it around the 50. Since he wasn't going to be using it anyway he decided to try to mask its distinctive shape. The camouflage netting came next. He draped it over the tarp covered gun and used the water can and the gas can to keep it from dropping at too much of an angle. He couldn't find any loose rocks to hold the netting down so he shoveled sand over the edges to keep it in place. Some brush along one side completed his preparations. As the sun began to peek up over the mountain he grabbed a gun and crawled under the netting. He wished the others could have been closer. He felt naked and alone sitting under the netting waiting for the Germans to spot him. He knew the others were close enough to hear any gun shots but that would do him little good if the Germans got to him before he could get the jeep clear of the netting. The time seemed to come to a standstill as he waited, wondering if the others felt the same way.

As the sun made its appearance the sand began to take on a golden glow. The wind slowly blew itself out as the heat reflected off of the desert floor. Under their nets the four men began to sweat from the lack of air flowing through their covers. Shadows lengthened and turned lighter as the bright orb continued to climb higher in the morning sky. The hidden jeeps cast shadows that were cooler than the space under the netting but none of the men dared take advantage of the reprieve offered by nature. Each man clutched the weapon in his hands and waited for the sound of German made engines. The chill of the night quickly gave way to the heat of the new day with the promise that it was going to be a scorcher. The only sounds were the shallow breaths of the men crouched under the nets. The tension was so thick that it seemed to suck the oxygen from the already heated air. None of the four men moved as they waited for the Germans to pass their hidden vehicles.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 5

The leader of the German patrol had his men up early. His orders included instructions for heightened security although there hadn't been any reason given for the increase. The German soldiers grumbled to themselves as they stumbled around in the dark to prepare a hurried breakfast. The cars were checked, their gas tanks refilled, and another day began.

The sun was just coming up as the patrol cars pulled out of the wadi where they had spent the night. The young lieutenant in charge yawned widely as he leaned back in his seat. He pulled his coat close around him to combat the chill that still hung in the air. His driver yawned and quickly covered his mouth with his hand to hide it. He cast a furtive glance at the lieutenant to see if he had noticed the yawn. The officer had his head back and his eyes closed as he relaxed into the cushioned seat. A quick glance over his shoulder told the driver that the two men in the back were still half asleep too. The driver kept his eyes on the road as the sun crept across the desert floor.

In the second car the driver was concentrating on following the other car. New to the desert, the young man at the wheel was jumping at his own shadows. His fellow soldiers had entertained themselves the night before by telling him horror stories about running into the enemy. Afraid of getting separated from the officer and his patrol car, the youth crowded close to the car in front of him. The other three men in his crew were making jokes about his reaction to their stories. None of them so much as glanced at the desert as they rode along.

Out in the desert the four men hiding under their nets listened as the patrol cars drove by. They didn't dare look too long at the cars as they motored past. There is a sixth sense that some people, especially those in dangerous jobs, develop that alerts them when they are being watched. It's just a feeling they get that warns those sensitive enough to pay attention. None of the Allied soldiers wanted to give any of the Germans any reason to look any closer at their surroundings. They all listened closely for any sign that they had been spotted but the patrol cars continued on without any change in speed or direction.

"I think we're safe old man." Moffitt smiled with relief as the sounds of the German engines faded away.

"For the moment." Troy responded. He cocked his head to listen for gunshots. "They haven't passed Hitch and Tully yet."

"Are you able to see either of them?" The British sergeant asked as he peered out from beneath the netting.

"No." Troy replied. "The light isn't very good yet. I hope they're far enough away from the road."

"I hope they remembered to cover their tracks." The other sergeant added.

"Yeah." Troy frowned. "I almost forgot about that myself."

"I still don't hear anything." Moffitt said softly. "They should be passed them by now."

"That's a good thing." Troy answered. "We'll wait a few more minutes before we take a chance on uncovering the jeep. I hope Tully and Hitch don't move too soon."

"Knowing them I'm sure they'll wait until they get a signal from you before they do anything."

Troy kept listening but there were no sounds of a fight. The patrol cars were gone and still there was no sign of the other jeeps. "Let's go!"

The sergeants pulled the cover from their jeep and Moffitt folded it to stow in the rear. Troy helped him repack the supplies so they wouldn't fall out. Troy was starting to worry when the other jeeps hadn't arrived by the time they were finished.

"Shall we go see how effective their concealment efforts were?" Moffitt suggested.

"We know they were effective." Troy replied. "We didn't hear any gunshots and we know the krauts couldn't have taken either of them without some shooting."

"True." Moffitt admitted. "Then shall we go tell them it's okay to come out now?"

"Troy grinned. "I think we'd better…before they melt under those nets."

They found Tully first. He was still crouching under the netting waiting for a signal to come out. As Troy and Moffitt drove up Tully slipped out from underneath the netting and looked behind them. "Where's Hitch?"

"We were going to ask you that." Troy answered.

"I don't know." Tully answered. "The last I saw of him he was looking for a spot to hide."

"We'll go look for him while you uncover your jeep." Troy instructed.

Tully nodded and turned to begin pulling the rocks off the edge of the netting.

"We'll be right back." Troy continued. "Keep your eyes open."

"Right Sarge."

Hitch stepped out from under the netting before the other jeep reached him. He had a pair of binoculars in his hands and a big smile on his face. "Hey Doc, it worked!"

"Did you have any doubt?" Moffitt asked smugly.

"Yeah, some." Hitch admitted. "Especially about the time I heard the patrol cars driving by."

"Everything all right?" Troy asked.

"Everything's fine Sarge." The blonde answered. "I watched them until they were too far away to see. As far as I could tell they never even looked this way."

Both sergeants nodded. "Good. Let's get that jeep uncovered and get it into the wadi before anyone else comes along." Troy ordered.

Hitch nodded and turned to pull the netting and the tarp off the jeep.

"A tarp too? That would have slowed you down if you had been spotted."

"I know Sarge but I only wrapped it around the 50 to try to disguise the gun. I couldn't have fired it while I was driving anyway and to stop and fire it would have made me a stationary target. Besides, you said to run, not fight."

Troy reached up and unwrapped the big gun. He folded the tarp and handed it to his driver without another word. Hitch tucked it into the jeep next to the camouflage net. With both jeeps ready the three men climbed into their seats and headed toward the wadi. They picked up Tully along the way and were soon setting up a makeshift camp.

A guard was posted and the jeeps were concealed in case any planes flew over.

"Sleep while you can." Troy ordered.

"We're awful close to the road here." Hitch worried. "What are we going to do if the Germans decided to check it during the day?"

"We'll deal with that if it happens." Troy replied.

"Okay Sarge, I'm going to turn in, I have next watch."

"At least we can see pretty far. No one is gonna sneak up on us without our knowing about it ahead of time." Tully remarked as Troy watched his driver walk away.

"Yeah, but the problem is, we'll be out in the open if we're forced to leave this wadi. That trick we just used won't work during the day. It only worked this time because the light wasn't very good at the time the krauts passed us."

"So we take out any patrol that comes into the wadi."

"We can't Tully. They'd be missed and that would put Jerry on the alert."

"So what's the plan?" Tully asked as he worked the matchstick under his tongue.

"I guess we just pray that no one decides to check this wadi. We'll stay alert and hope like heck we can come up with a better plan if we actually need one."

"Praying has always worked for me." Tully grinned. "But if we need more than that I'm sure you'll come up with something, you always do." He turned to walk away. "I'm going to turn in too, I have the watch right after Hitch. 'Night Sarge."

"Good night Tully." Troy slumped to the ground as Tully grabbed his blankets and headed toward his jeep. It was too hot to cover up with the blankets but he was going to use them to block the sun while he slept; they couldn't risk using the natural shade in the wadi in case a plane flew over. Troy had insisted that anyone not on guard stay under the netting at all times. It would be hotter, but safer.

Moffitt was on guard and was sprawled on top of the wadi using field glasses to watch for the enemy. Troy checked on him before seeking his own bed. The problem of what to do if the Germans decided to check the wadi kept him awake for quite a while. He finally fell asleep with no clearer answer than he had had before he crawled into his bed.

Their luck held and the day expired with no new challenges. One patrol and a column had passed on the road but they had not made any attempts to check the wadi. Tully had been on guard and he had warned the others, but fortunately they had not had to take any action.

"Hitch, as long as we're awake, we may as well eat. We should be able to make a small fire if you're careful not to let it smoke."

"Right Sarge."

"Make it quick so you can put the fire out. Make sure you cover the ashes so no one knows we were here."

"Give me ten minutes Sarge. I can heat up the meals and put the fire out before I serve the food."

Troy nodded and called Moffitt over to the jeep. "Okay Doctor, where is this old caravan road?" Troy spread a map over a large rock.

Moffitt leaned over the map. "Here it is." He traced a line on the crinkled paper. "It's not well marked but I remember it quite well. There are a few places where it gets kind of narrow and there are several places with steep drop-offs but I think we can make it. I doubt that the Germans use it because their vehicles are wider than ours."

"How narrow?" Troy asked specifically.

"With anyone but Hitch and Tully driving I wouldn't even suggest it." Moffitt answered soberly.

"That narrow huh?"

"That narrow." Moffitt answered with a nod. He shrugged as he watched Troy for a reaction. "I wasn't going to mention the road, but since we are falling behind, I thought I would let you decide if you want to risk it."

Troy stared at the map as he made some quick calculations. "You're sure we could save time by going that way?"

"If we can get over it, then yes."

"Any chance we'll run into a caravan by using this road?"

"Possible, but unlikely." The other sergeant answered. "There are shorter routes to market now and a lot of the locals are dealing with the Germans so they no longer have a need to carry goods across the mountain."

"All right, we'll try it. I just hope you're right about it being possible. If we can't get through we're going to lose even more time because we'll have to backtrack to get back on a serviceable road and headquarters won't be happy if we arrive too late to get the information they want."

"There are no guarantees that we'll make it in time no matter what we do." Moffitt pointed out. "To be honest, I'm not sure that they even believe this mission is possible to accomplish in the first place."

"What, you're doubting our abilities?" Troy asked with a smile.

"No, just their confidence in us."

"The captain believes in us."

"I didn't say the captain, I said headquarters."

"I believe in us."

Moffitt lowered his head and smiled. "I guess that's what really counts, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is." Troy smiled.

"So, do you want to be the one to tell headquarters that we were too late?"

"No thank you." Moffitt smiled.

"Then let's not be late, because I don't want to do it either." He folded the map and prepared to put it away. His stomach growled and he looked over to check on the progress of their meal. Hitch was digging through the boxes in the rear of his jeep. "What's wrong?" Troy asked as he noticed the blonde's frown.

"I thought we had another couple of cartons of k-rations in here. They were right here, right on top of all this other stuff."

"Are you sure? Maybe they fell down in along the sides."

"No." Hitch shook his head. "They were right here and now they aren't. I looked along the sides, they aren't there." He looked up with a worried expression. "I thought I had them tied down but they must have worked loose."

Troy glanced over at Moffitt. "When did you see them last?" He asked his driver.

"Last night when we stopped to fill the gas tanks. I had to loosen the ropes to get the gas can out."

"Maybe you moved them." Troy began to root around in the back of the jeep. Even with both of them looking the missing rations remained missing.

"It's a big desert Troy." Moffitt ventured. "Even if they fell out it's entirely possible that the Germans may never find them."

"But if they do find them the Germans will know that someone is out here. How could you lose them Hitch?"

"I don't know Sarge." The private answered miserably. "I really thought that they were tied down too tight to fall out."

"Well you'd better hope the krauts don't find them, that could blow our entire mission." Troy growled without sympathy.

Hitch nodded, accepting the responsibility if that happened.

"When we are done eating I want you to repack that entire jeep. Make sure it's done right this time." Troy ordered.

"I'll help you." Tully offered.

"No you won't." Troy growled. "He can do it himself. He lost the supplies by himself."

Hitch nodded silently and took the rations he had and went to build a fire. When the fire was started he put the meals on to heat. When he put the fire out he was extra careful to kick the sand over the embers so Troy would have no reason to complain.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Secret Raid**

BY:AliasCWN

Chapter 6

After the incident with the missing rations the camp had been pretty quiet. Hitch was avoiding Troy and Troy was cranky. Moffitt and Tully kept their distance, not wanting to aggravate the situation any more than necessary. They left the wadi just after dark without seeing any more German patrols. Thankfully the sky was clear so they could make better time.

Moffitt and Tully took the lead so Moffitt could locate the old caravan road. He changed their course slightly as he consulted the map he held in his hand. Troy had taken over driving the third jeep, much to Hitch's relief. With Hitch bringing up the rear the three jeeps were staying close together in the dark. Tully clutched a compass in his fist and checked it every time Moffitt asked for a course change. It was after midnight before the British sergeant called a halt.

"What's wrong now?" Troy asked as he pulled up next to Tully.

"Nothing's wrong." Moffitt smiled. "We're here."

"Here? This is the trail?" Troy looked at the narrow trail that led off into the rocks toward the mountain and frowned. "You expect the jeeps to go up that?"

"This is just the end of the trail." The other sergeant explained. "The caravans begin to separate here to head for their different destinations. The trail is more pronounced, better defined, as we get deeper into the hills. We'll have to pick our way through the rocks here but in a short time we'll have a much better trail to follow."

"I sure hope so." Troy grumbled. "If it stays like this I have my doubts about our being able to make it."

"Trust me old man, it gets better."

Troy was still frowning but he nodded his agreement. "Lead out, we'll travel until it starts to get light and then you can find us a place to camp."

"There are caves all across these mountains." Moffitt answered. "Most of them are small but they should be large enough to hide a jeep. We can use several at once if it comes to that."

Troy looked at the trail again and shook his head doubtfully. "All right, if you say so. We need to make up for lost time but we can't afford to lose a jeep."

"Just follow where Tully leads." The Brit replied. "If either of you run into trouble just yell."

Troy looked over at Hitchcock and nodded.

Hitch took his glasses off and cleaned them so that no dust would obstruct his view. He chewed his gum and kept silent. The last thing he wanted to do was have a problem that would draw Troy's attention to him again. He was still feeling guilty for having lost the rations and potentially jeopardized the mission.

"Shall we be off Tully?"

Tully nodded and started his engine. The jeep moved slowly as Tully picked his way through the jumble of rocks in their path. While camels had no trouble stepping over or around the rocks, the jeeps were not quite as agile. They had to be very careful that they didn't take out an oil pan. Several times Moffitt was forced to get out and move obstructions out of their way.

As they neared the top of the mountain the trail began to weave back and forth in a series of switchbacks to make the steep incline easier on heavily loaded camels. While the jeeps had no trouble with the angle of the trail, they did encounter some difficulties with several of the tight turns. Even though they were small the jeeps still could not turn as short as a camel. At one point Tully had to back up to make the swing for the turn. Troy and Hitch, forewarned, managed to swing wide enough to make the bend without backing up.

The turns were not their only challenge. More than once they were forced to hug the side of the mountain as the trail became too narrow for the jeeps. The drivers had to inch their way past the narrow spots. Loose rocks sometimes slid under the tires threatening to send the vehicles sliding off of the trail. They had to constantly watch for rock slides that could send them tumbling to the bottom of the mountain in a crumpled heap.

Tully gripped the steering wheel tightly as he fought to keep the inside wheels on the side of the trail. The outside wheels were clinging precariously to the very edge of the path and beyond that was a steep drop to the bottom of the mountain. Moffitt, on the outside seat, held firmly to the dash to keep from sliding out as the jeep tipped dangerously.

Troy squinted to watch the jeep ahead of him navigate the narrow trail. For once he was grateful for the dim moonlight that lit their way. Normally he would have preferred more light for driving but for this portion of the trail he was glad it was dark. There was enough light to see the edge of the trail on his side, just to the left of his leg. He was having more trouble seeing the trail ahead, or the edge on the other side of the jeep. The light didn't allow him to see what lay beyond the trail on the far side. He knew it was a steep drop-off, he could hear the rocks they knocked loose hitting as they fell. The sounds echoed over the low rumble of the jeep motor as the rocks bounced off of the side of the mountain on their way to the bottom. The drive was nerve racking enough without being able to see the sheer drop and all of the empty space around it. He just concentrated on keeping his wheels as far to the left side of the trail as he could manage.

Behind him Hitch wasn't watching the other jeeps at all. His entire concentration was on keeping his jeep on the trail. Forgotten for the moment were the fears of being spotted by any Germans or Arabs. He never even considered that the rocks they knocked loose might alert anyone to their presence. There were no flat spots to make a camp so it was extremely unlikely that they were sharing this part of the mountain with any other humans but at this point they couldn't afford to worry about such things. Hitch, like Troy and Tully, was more focused on getting his jeep safely across the dangerous segment of the trail than on anything else.

When the trail widened again Moffitt had Tully stop so that they could take a breather and relax. The stress of the trip was mirrored in all four faces. No one relaxed until the last jeep was safely parked on the wider portion of the caravan road. They were clear of the drop and once again on solid ground.

"That was the narrowest part of the trail." Moffitt told a relieved Troy. "There is one more narrow spot but the drop-off is not nearly as steep or as deep."

"Any place to camp before we reach it?" Troy asked.

"Afraid not." Moffitt answered. "But we won't reach it until just before morning, the light will be better by then." He glanced at his watch. "We only have about another hour and a half before the sun comes up."

"What about the caves you mentioned?"

"There are several in that area. The ones I have in mind are a bit off the trail but we should have no trouble reaching them with the jeeps. We should be there just about sun up."

"Pull up before we get there and you and I can check them out first." Troy ordered. "I don't want to stumble onto an Arab camp now that we're this close."

"This is a slow time for the caravans." The British sergeant answered. "I doubt that we'll find them in use, but you're right, we should check to be certain."

"We'd better get moving then." Troy decided. "We're too close to our target to risk detection now. Let's find those caves and get these jeeps under cover before it gets light."

The trail widened out and the jeeps made good time for the next hour. The first signs of dawn found them at the anticipated narrow section of the trail. As Moffitt had predicted, the light was better, and the short narrow section was soon behind them. Much to Troy's relief they were able to keep all four tires on the trail this time. It required all of their focus but it wasn't as nerve racking as the previous challenges. The sun was beginning to cast a light over the top of the mountain as the last of the vehicles cleared the obstacle. Tully found a place to pull his jeep off of the trail behind some large boulders. There was room for the others too and the boulders hid them from prying eyes.

"We'd better walk from here." Moffitt suggested as he dug around in the back of his jeep.

"How far?"

"Just around the corner." Moffitt answered. He pulled out two bundles of clothing, handing one to Troy. "If we're spotted these should keep our identity a secret."

Troy took the Arab clothing and put them on.

The transformation was complete when Moffitt pulled two old rifles out of the third jeep. He smiled at the other sergeant's surprised look. "It occurred to me that we might need a disguise at some point. I had these added to our supplies. It would look suspicious if we were carrying American weapons. The Arabs almost all carry these older rifles. I ask the captain to make sure that they were in good working order."

"Good thinking. Do we have extra ammunition for them too?"

"Of course, rifles are no good without ammunition." The Brit handed Troy a small leather pouch with extra bullets for the rifles.

Troy cocked his head and smiled. "Any other surprises I should know about?"

"None from me," Moffitt looked in the direction of the caves and added, "and I truly hope that no one else has any in store for us either."

Troy looked where the other sergeant was looking and nodded. "I hope not either. Let's go find out so we can get these jeeps under cover."

Tully and Hitch watched the sergeants leave before taking up guard stations. The silence dragged on for a long time before Tully could take it no longer.

"It's not your fault you know."

Hitch looked over and sighed. "Then whose fault was it? I was driving that jeep. I untied the rope to get to the gas can."

"The jeeps were so heavily loaded that everything was crammed in there. With all the bouncing around it's no wonder something came loose."

"I should have seen it. I should have double checked to make sure everything was tied tight."

"Things happen." Tully shrugged. "Besides, there is no evidence that the krauts found them. Maybe they never will."

"Maybe. Or maybe they did and we won't know about it until it is too late."

"There's nothing we can do about it Hitch. Worrying isn't going to change anything."

"I can't help it." Hitch groaned. "If they find them it could cost us the entire mission. This assignment is hard enough without my messing up."

"Even if they find them, we're a long way from there now Hitch. They won't know who lost them or when they lost them. The Arabs are always wandering around out here; maybe they'll think some Arab dropped them."

"I doubt it." Hitch sighed. "And I don't think Sarge believes that either."

"Sarge was upset, but I think he regrets saying anything."

"He was right Tully, I messed up."

"So don't do it again. I still don't think you should blame yourself but double check everything from here on out if it makes you feel any better."

"I have been, and it doesn't." Hitch mumbled.

"Someone's coming.' Tully suddenly whispered. He stepped behind a rock as Hitch did the same.

"Tully, Hitch, we're coming in."

"Come ahead Sarge." Tully called back when Hitch didn't answer the sergeant.

"The caves are empty. We'll hide the jeeps in there and camp for the day. Moffitt says we should reach our destination by tomorrow night. Let's get the jeeps under cover and get some rest."

The sergeants took off their Arab disguises and packed them away. They hid the jeeps in the caves and settled in for the day. The hazardous drive had taken a toll and the three not on guard duty were soon fast asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 7

"That's our target." Troy announced the next day. The caravan trail had indeed helped them to make up lost time. Now they studied the German base from the protection of some nearby hills.

"Busy place."

Troy nodded without lowering his glasses.

"How do you plan to get your hands on the information we need?"

"I don't know yet, first we have to see what we're up against. We know they beefed up security for these tests but the tests were supposed to end today. We won't know how much they keep in place until we watch them for a while."

"There's a panzer unit parked outside the wall." Moffitt observed.

"I saw it." Troy acknowledged.

"There is an Arab encampment on the other side of the base, outside the wall." Moffitt continued.

"I saw them too." Troy admitted.

"They could be our way in." Moffitt suggested.

"They're camped outside; there's no way of knowing if the Germans are letting them in during the tests."

"The tests were supposed to end today." Moffitt reasoned.

"They'll be sending the results to Berlin within the next day or two." Troy answered. "They may not let any strangers in until after the results are off the base."

"The base commander may decide to deliver them himself."

Troy frowned at Moffitt's suggestion. "We can't allow him to take them out of here before we have a chance to photograph them."

"We can't stop him without revealing that we know about the tests."

"We'll have to go in tonight; I didn't come all this way just to miss those test results. Troy lowered his glasses and waited for Moffitt to point out why it was a bad idea to rush in. He was ready for that; he wasn't ready for what Moffitt said next.

"Troy, look at that panzer unit!"

"Why? What's happening?" Troy raised his glasses again to check out the line of tanks and halftracks.

"Behind the tanks, there are several men standing there talking."

"Where? I don't see anyone."

"They stopped behind the middle tank. I could be wrong Troy, but I would swear that one of them is Dietrich."

"Dietrich? Here?"

"Keep watching, they should reappear soon."

There was a tense silence until the two men walked out from behind the tank.

"It is Dietrich."

"Do you suppose they know we're here?" Moffitt's thoughts went immediately to the missing rations. Had they been found? Had the Germans jumped to the correct conclusion?

Troy lowered his glasses and rolled onto his back. His face was a study in concentration as he considered the possibilities.

"Troy?"

"I don't think so Moffitt. If they knew we were here I think Dietrich would have stayed out of sight. He could have set up a trap without our even knowing he was in the area. This way we know enough to watch out for him."

"Then why is he here?"

Troy gave it some thought as the hot desert sun beat down on them. "We'd better find a good place to hide the jeeps. With Dietrich in the neighborhood we're going to have to be extra careful. He may not know we're here but that won't stop him from taking security seriously. He'll have patrols out watching for intruders. He probably has spies watching everything. I don't think posing as Arabs will work."

Moffitt looked back at the German base and nodded. Dietrich's presence was going to make the assignment a lot more difficult.

Tully and Hitch noticed the tense faces and held their questions as the two sergeants returned to the jeeps. They slid into their seats and waited to find out what the sergeants wanted to do.

"Moffitt, you drive the other jeep. I'm going to ride with Hitch in case we run into trouble. I don't think we're exposed yet and I'd like to keep it that way." Troy climbed into his jeep behind the 50 and nodded at the others to head out. He reached down to remove the dust cover just as a precaution.

Tully and Hitch exchanged worried frowns but remained silent. They reached down and started the jeeps to follow Moffitt when he pulled out.

When Moffitt pulled up in front of a rather large cave Troy immediately jumped to the ground. Reaching for a weapon he turned to head into the cave. "You stay here." He ordered his driver. He disappeared inside without a backward glance.

Moffitt nodded at Tully to do the same as he reached for another weapon. He went to help Troy check out the cave. They were gone for several minutes before rushing back toward the jeeps. Both privates jerked to attention at the sight of the sergeants hurrying toward them. Without a word the sergeants climbed into the third jeep and drove it into the cave. The other two jeeps followed.

"What's going on?" Tully asked Moffitt as Troy rushed out to erase the tracks leading into the cave.

Moffitt looked at Tully before turning to watch Troy with a thoughtful expression. "Dietrich's here."

"Dietrich?" Hitch exclaimed. "Why is he here?"

"We don't know." Moffitt answered quietly. "We saw his unit parked outside the base wall. He was talking to one of his officers by the tanks when we observed the base." Moffitt hesitated, watching Hitch as he continued. "It's possible that they know we're here."

Hitch looked shocked, then guilty. He quickly lowered his head to hide his reaction to the news.

"He's one of Rommel's best commanders." Tully spoke into the awkward silence. "Maybe they don't know we're here at all; maybe he just drew the security detail for this operation."

Moffitt looked over at Tully and smiled. "Perhaps. Troy doesn't think they are aware of our presence either. He says Dietrich would have stayed out of sight if he knew we were close."

"See Hitch, Sarge doesn't think the mission is blown yet. You didn't mess anything up."

Moffitt frowned at the implication that Hitch was blaming himself. He almost didn't tell them the problem with Dietrich's presence. It was the realization that they would need to be informed if they were going to pull off the mission that made up his mind for him. "Dietrich's presence does create a problem." Moffitt admitted. "He knows us and his men know us. If anyone sees us he will recognize our description immediately. And if he's in charge of security, we'll have to keep our eye out for him."

"They'll be waiting for us." Hitch groaned.

"Without a doubt." Moffitt agreed. "But not because of anything you did. They will be on alert even if they don't know we're here. These tests are very important to them. If Dietrich is in charge of their security he will make sure that his men stay alert."

"Moffitt!"

"Coming Troy." Moffitt smiled at Tully and tried to give Hitch some reassurance but he wasn't sure Hitch was paying attention. He hurried to the entrance of the cave to see what Troy needed.

"Look." Troy pointed to some dust in the distance. "It looks like their headed right for us. Do you think the krauts know about these caves?"

"Perhaps." Moffitt admitted. "Actually, considering the circumstances, it's highly likely that they would have taken the precaution of becoming familiar with the entire area." They watched the dust for another minute. "There may be another explanation."

"Such as?"

"There is a road on the other side of those hills." Moffitt remembered. "It may just be a patrol or a column out running a routine scout."

"Take Tully and find out." As Moffitt nodded and turned away Troy called him back. "On second thought, you and Tully stay here. Hitch and I will check it out. I want you and Tully to take a light and see where this cave goes. Maybe we'll get lucky and there will be another way out at the other end. Either way, I want to know what we have. I don't want anyone sneaking in on us through some other entrance."

"It's possible there may be another entrance, there is quite a draft flowing through there."

"Check it out; it may give us an escape route if we need it."

Hitch and Troy drove off to investigate the dust plume while Tully and Moffitt prepared to explore the cave.

"Take this." Moffitt handed Tully a flashlight as he reached for a weapon. He picked up another flashlight and a weapon of his own.

"Think we'll run into bats in there Doc?"

"Why? Are you afraid of bats?" Moffitt was surprised by the question. Tully didn't seem to let much of anything scare him and the thought of bats being his Achilles heel was somehow amusing. He paused in what he was doing to really look at his driver.

"Nope, bats don't scare me." Tully answered as he checked his own weapon. "I was just remembering something."

"About bats?"

"Yeah." Tully admitted. "My cousin and I went into this cave one time." Tully finished checking his weapon and looked up at Moffitt. "It was real dark in there, just like in here. We made ourselves these torches out of rags and old motor oil."

"We have flashlights Tully. We don't need to make torches."

"I know. Those torches didn't really light things up too well anyway." Tully grinned at the memory. "Anyway, we were doing okay until we came to this one cavern that had all these bats hanging from the ceiling. I guess the torches were a little too hot or the roof was a little too low, but all of a sudden there were bats all around us. They just let loose and took off flying. In less than a minute the bats were all out of the cave and gone."

"We're not using torches." Moffitt repeated.

"I know that Doc, but the thing is, we don't know what scared the bats. Maybe it was the heat, or maybe it was just the light. Whatever it was, those bats were gone."

"Are you worried that we might upset the bats?"

"Yeah." Tully admitted. "Those krauts aren't that far away. What if we upset the bats and they all go flying out of here in one big group? Won't the krauts get suspicious if they see bats flying during the day?"

"I see what you mean." Moffitt nodded with a smile. "I hadn't considered that possibility. If the Germans saw a large group of bats flying in daylight they might decide to investigate to see what upset them."

"And they'd find us." Tully finished.

"Troy wants us to check out this cave but I think it can wait until the Germans are far enough away that they won't be alerted by any bats." Moffitt decided.

Tully nodded, satisfied that they wouldn't be doing anything to alert the enemy to their presence. "Maybe we could just check out this cavern. It's pretty big, that might take a while. Sarge might get back before we have time to go any further. We could run it past him. He might want to wait until dark to do any exploring."

"Good idea Tully, let's do that."

They found several short tunnels leading away from the main cavern that were interconnected. They didn't go anywhere; they just doubled back on each other. Tully followed one only to run into Moffitt who had followed another.

"All roads lead to Rome."

"What?" Tully asked in confusion.

"Just a saying." The sergeant smiled. "It means that all the roads lead to the same place."

"Sure looks that way." Tully agreed.

"There's a ledge over here that looks wide enough to walk along." Moffitt pointed to the other side of the cavern. "It overlooks the main cavern."

"Any openings to the outside we could use to keep watch?"

"No, I'm afraid not."

"Too bad."

"I can't imagine any use for that ledge at present so why don't we head back down and watch for Troy? We want to be ready if that dust really is headed our way."

"Sure Doc, we should have a guard posted anyway." Tully agreed. "Just in case."

"We'll look for Troy and then you can stand guard while I check our maps. Perhaps some of them will include these caves. It might help."

"Okay doc."


	8. Chapter 8

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 8

"A convoy."

"What are they doing?"

Troy and Hitchcock were on a ledge overlooking the road that Moffitt had mentioned.

"Looks like they have mechanical problems." Troy explained after watching the activity for several minutes. He continued to watch the Germans through his binoculars.

"I wonder what they're hauling."

Troy looked over at his driver and smiled. "All the drivers are sitting in the shade near the front of the convoy. Why don't we go take a look in the last couple of trucks and see for ourselves? Either that or you could go down there and ask them. How curious are you?"

"Aren't you afraid of getting caught?"

"Those trucks are so far apart that they can't even see the last ones from where they're sitting." Troy checked the positions of the drivers again before sliding back from the edge of the ledge. "Come on."

Troy led the way around the hill to a narrow wash that led down to the floor of the canyon. Moving quickly they followed the wash to the road where the trucks were parked. They stayed low as they ran to the last truck in line. Troy checked for the drivers again before lifting the flap on the tailgate. "You check this one, I'll move further up the line."

Hitch nodded and climbed over the tailgate.

Troy headed for the next truck in line. He peered over the tailgate to find the boxes stacked so tightly that there was no room for him to climb in. He moved to the next truck.

The next truck had oddly shaped bundles wrapped in burlap. They were cradled in wooden frames that kept them from shifting as the truck moved. Troy climbed inside and gently pulled the burlap off of one end of the first bundle. He found long metal tubes. He recognized the tubes from a briefing he had attended earlier that month. _So that's what you've been testing._ He smiled as he said it under his breath. A noise outside drew his attention. He quickly put the burlap back the way he had found it. He climbed over the tailgate and dropped to the ground. He took a quick look to be sure he hadn't left any indication of his visit. Satisfied, he headed for the wash where he expected to find Hitch.

He ducked behind some rocks next to the road and watched as the truck drivers walked toward their trucks. He could hear them talking and joking as they walked along the vehicles. The drivers climbed into their cabs and started their engines. As Troy watched the trucks slowly pulled away, headed to their assigned destination.

Troy looked for Hitch but he didn't see him. He anxiously watched the rear of the last truck, hoping to see his driver drop to the ground as the truck drove away. He nearly ran after the truck when Hitch still didn't appear.

"Sarge!"

The call came from behind him. The sergeant spun to locate the private. "Where have you been?"

Hitch lost his smile as Troy growled at him. "I was checking that last truck. I jumped out and hid when I heard the drivers coming back." Hitch answered in his own defense.

"I didn't see you get out."

"I had to hide so that they wouldn't see me."

"I didn't see you." Troy repeated.

"I saw you." Hitch replied. "You came out of that third truck."

Troy began to relax. "What did you find?"

Hitch began to relax too. "Just the usual stuff; ammunition, grenades, a couple of boxes of 88 shells." The younger man shrugged. "What did you find?"

"I'll tell you when we get back to the cave. Let's get moving before we are spotted."

They returned to their jeep and were soon pulling in behind the other two jeeps. Hitch went out to erase their tracks as Troy slid from his seat.

"Moffitt."

"Here Troy."

"Did you find anything interesting in your search? Is there another way out of here?"

"We haven't checked the back of the cave yet. Tully pointed out a potential problem with doing it while the Germans were in the area." Moffitt went on to tell him about the bats and the problem they could cause. Then he went into detail about the tunnels they had found and the ledge that overlooked the cavern. "We thought we could wait until dark to check out the rest of the cave; maybe before we go after the information on the base."

"All right, we'll post a guard and check the rest of the cavern after it gets dark. I don't want to risk a fire until after dark either. I don't want the smoke to be seen or smelled. The risk is a lot lower if we wait until dark. The night winds will scatter the smoke smell and we can keep the fire deep in the cave so the glow doesn't show."

"Are we going to go out and try to find out what they are testing?"

"No need." Troy grinned. "I found some long metal tubes wrapped in burlap in the back of one of those trucks."

"Metal tubes?"

"Yeah, as in rocket launching tubes? Do you remember those briefings we got about a month ago about that new weapon the Germans were working on? It looks like it is in the testing stage. The early tests didn't look good but apparently they have made some improvements."

"But we don't know how these tests turned out."

"That just means that we still have to get on to the base and make copies of those test results."

The German convoy limped onto the base nearly an hour late. The base commander was not happy that a mechanical problem had delayed his shipment. With his new weapons on board he was paranoid about their arrival.

"At any rate Captain," he said to the tall officer who stood beside him, "I don't think we have any further need of your services."

"You still have not sent out the report including the results of your tests." Captain Dietrich replied stiffly. "Your secret is still in danger of discovery."

"I don't agree Captain." Major Hermann Koft argued. "The tests are complete so there is no danger of anyone seeing the rockets in action. The rockets themselves are safely stored in my warehouse. They will stay there under heavy guard until the unveiling. As of now no one even suspects that they exist. You did a fine job Captain but your continued presence will only draw attention to my base. My men can take it from here."

"What of the reports Major?"

"They are sealed and locked in my office. Tomorrow they will be sent to Berlin with one of my trusted officers. He has no idea that he will be carrying them. He thinks he is delivering regular dispatches as a favor to me. He will not know the truth until after he returns here." Major Koft answered smugly.

"The Rat Patrol could very easily enter this base and sneak into your office and photograph those reports Major." Dietrich warned.

"The Rat Patrol! I think you give these Allied commandos entirely too much credit Captain. You said yourself that our spies reported that they left their base seven days ago headed southwest. The spies said they were going on a long patrol. There is little likelihood of them having finished that patrol and making it here before I send the reports out tomorrow. You have had patrols and columns watching every road leading to this base. There have been no sightings of your Rat Patrol or any other Allied unit headed this way."

"They have not been sighted anywhere since they left their base." Dietrich pointed out. "They could very easily be on their way here."

"Even if they were headed this way they could not possibly make it here for another couple of days. And you had your men watching for them."

"They can travel faster in their jeeps than we can in our halftracks." Dietrich argued.

"Not without being seen." The major argued. "We had every form of security that you suggested and none of them reported any sighting of them."

"What about the American rations we found?"

"Can you say positively that they belong to this phantom commando team?"

"Of course not Sir." The captain admitted. "But I also cannot say that they were not lost by that unit."

"You said that they were a well-disciplined, careful unit who made very few mistakes."

"Yes sir."

"Then do you really think that they would be careless enough to drop easily identified rations where we would be sure to find them?"

"Accidents happen."

"Go back to your base Captain. Give up this delusion of yours. I will be sure to inform Berlin of the excellent service you provided. Don't worry; your reputation is safe Captain. But it is over. This project is over as far as you are concerned. Take your unit and return to your regular duties."

"Sir, I would suggest that I stay until the reports are on their way. I can escort your officer to his transport."

"Captain," Major Koft replied, "I have my own security for the base. You were here to provide security for the tests. The tests are done. The sooner you leave the sooner you stop attracting unwanted attention to my base. I'll authorize you to leave immediately."

"Very well Major, I will go. I hope you don't live to regret this."

"Good bye Captain."

Less than an hour later Dietrich and his unit departed for their home base. He glanced back as they turned a corner to see Major Koft watching them leave. He considered staying around to keep an eye on the base but just as quickly dismissed the idea. Major Koft had ordered him to leave, so leave he would. It would serve the pompous officer right if he had difficulties delivering his reports. The captain studied the surrounding mountains with the distinct feeling that Sergeant Troy was close by. He couldn't see him, and he had no proof, just a vague uneasy feeling that wouldn't go away. He consoled himself with the knowledge that Major Koft would get his reports to Berlin if he had to deliver the details personally. It was no longer his concern if the Allies chose to try to get a copy of the tests results. The thought struck him as treasonous but he reminded himself that by leaving he was following orders. He turned facing forward and watched the trail ahead as they headed for home.


	9. Chapter 9

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 9

"Dietrich's unit is gone."

Troy looked up from smearing grease paint on his face to look at Moffitt. "Are you sure?"

"The vehicles are all gone."

"He could be waiting for us Sarge." Tully whispered.

"We have to take that chance." Troy answered as he went back to blackening his features. "If the tests are done they will be sending the results to Berlin. We have to get to them before they send them to Berlin."

"Are you sure you don't want all of us to go in?" Moffitt questioned.

"No. I want Tully and Hitch to guard our way out. We'll leave you just inside the base so you can keep an eye on the guards on the perimeter." He explained to the privates. "Try to avoid contact, remember, we can't leave any evidence that we were there. If we have to take out a guard we need to take the body with us. No shots, no blood, no witnesses. Hitch, take your garrote with you."

"Right Sarge."

"Tully, maybe we could use your slingshot if we have to silence a guard. It's a last resort but we don't want to get caught on the base either."

"Okay."

"All right, let's go. Moffitt, do you have the camera?"

"Right here." Moffitt held up the small camera that he planned to use. "Don't you think Hitch and Tully should darken their faces too?"

"No," Troy responded, "they aren't going any further than the wall. If they get caught they can claim that they never went near the office. Maybe they won't get shot as spies that way."

They made their way to the base and paused by the perimeter. Troy and Moffitt prepared to leave the privates behind. Moffitt turned to the younger men and smiled. "Wish us luck."

Tully nodded and shifted his matchstick to the side of his mouth. "Luck." Hitch watched them go in silence.

"If Dietrich really is gone then they have a better than fair chance of succeeding." Tully told his buddy.

"If."

"His vehicles are all gone."

Hitch looked over at Tully and frowned. Tully fell silent and they waited quietly for the sergeants to return. An hour passed and there was no sign of the sergeants. They had no way of knowing if the sergeants had reached the office or not. They didn't know if they had found the reports. There hadn't been any shots or alarms but they had known Dietrich to pull some sneaky captures before. They considered the possibility that the sergeants had been caught. Still they waited, not ready to give up just yet.

In the commanders office Troy and Moffitt had found the reports. After a harrowing trip across the base they had managed to slip into the office and locate the test results. Moffitt had skimmed them briefly before photographing any of them.

"What's wrong Moffitt?" Troy whispered as he noticed the frown on the Englishman's face.

"These reports look very promising." Moffitt answered as he continued to read the test results.

"All the more reason to get them back to G-2."

"Jerry is going to start making these by the hundreds once they read these results." Moffitt warned as he placed the reports on the desk.

"We can't destroy them Moffitt." Troy hissed. "Besides, it wouldn't do any good; they'd only send another copy."

"Troy, look at the handwriting on the reports."

"So?" Troy asked after checking the penmanship. "It's sloppy, so what?"

"I could duplicate that writing."

"Why?"

"These reports were sealed. What if they send them out without looking at them?"

"You can't take the reports." Troy warned, still not understanding what Moffitt was getting at.

"Look, they were all written on this paper." Moffitt pointed at a disheveled pile of papers on the desk. "What if I changed the figures on the reports and replaced the originals with the altered copies? Unless someone memorized the real results they might never realize that they were changed. I can make it look as if the rockets are a failure. At least make it look like they need more modifications before they can be used."

"If they catch on they'll know we know about the tests."

"Or they'll blame one of their own for sabotaging the project. They're all a bit paranoid in Berlin." Moffitt held up the reports. "If these are delivered the way they are the Germans will manufacture them by the hundreds and kill thousands of Allied soldiers. We can't stop them but perhaps we can delay their implementation for a while longer."

"Do it." Troy decided. "But make it fast."

The British sergeant smiled. "This hand writing is so sloppy that fast shouldn't be a problem at all."

Troy paced the office and worried while Moffitt adjusted the results of the tests so they looked discouraging. He had to admit to some success but he kept that to a minimum.

"All done."

Troy watched as Moffitt placed the altered reports in the envelope and resealed it. They replaced everything exactly as they found it. Moffitt tucked the original reports inside his shirt and prepared to leave.

"All done?"

"I believe so." The Brit answered with a confident smile.

"Then let's get out of here, we've been here way too long already. Hitch and Tully are probably pulling their hair out by now."

Hitch and Tully were still waiting when they returned.

"Everything clear?" Troy whispered as they ducked into the shadows between a truck and a wall.

"All clear Sarge." Tully answered.

"What's that?" Troy nodded toward a blanket Hitch held in his hand.

"We found it in the truck." Tully answered for Hitch. "We thought if anyone came by we could cover our faces with it so we wouldn't stand out in the dark."

Looking at his driver Troy nodded and asked, "Anyone come by?"

Hitch and Tully both shook their heads.

"Moffitt, lead out, don't lose those papers."

"Papers? What papers?" Hitch asked, concern on his face. "I thought you were just going to photograph them. Did something go wrong? Did they know we were here?"

"Nothing like that." Troy answered. "Moffitt replaced the reports with false ones that look bad for the rockets. We had to bring the originals along because we couldn't risk destroying them there."

"He has them on him?"

"Yeah Hitch, he has them on him. Is there a problem?" Troy demanded.

"What if he gets caught?"

"We can't get caught." Troy told him.

Hitch looked at Moffitt's retreating back and bit his lip.

"If that's all, we need to get going." Troy motioned Tully to follow Moffitt.

Troy followed Tully, keeping to the shadows. Hitch twisted the blanket in his hands anxiously before going after Troy.

They bypassed the first guard and crossed an alley that led them closer to the wall. Moffitt peeked around the corner and only gave the all clear once a few off duty soldiers had passed by. He slipped around the corner and ran for the darkness on the other side of the street. The wall was almost within sight. Tully followed, taking cover in the same shadow that hid Moffitt. Moffitt moved on after Tully joined him. Tully waited for Troy to start across before he turned to follow Moffitt. Troy paused in the shadow to wait for Hitch. Three more German soldiers came around a corner and Troy had to duck out of sight. Hitch took cover on his side of the street and watched as the soldiers walked past. He held the blanket up to his face to stay hidden as he kept his eye on them.

Once the soldiers turned the corner Hitch lowered the blanket. He could see Troy waiting for him on the other side. He could still hear the soldiers as they continued to move away. He was about to run across the street when another soldier turned the corner. At first Hitch thought that he had been spotted but the German kept walking. Hitch could see Troy looking at his watch. With another glance both ways Hitch ran across the open street and joined his sergeant.

"We have to go. Moffitt and Tully are probably back at the jeeps by now."

"Sorry Sarge."

"It wasn't your fault but we've got to go."

Hitch nodded and followed the sergeant down the alley. He didn't know if Moffitt and Tully had missed them yet but he knew they wouldn't leave without them, just like Troy wouldn't leave without him.

He worried about the sergeants, especially Moffitt. If they got caught they would be immediately labeled as spies with their blackened faces. His clean face would not save him either but at least there was a chance that he could talk his way out of a firing squad. The sergeants would never get a chance to try. Moffitt was carrying the evidence that could condemn them all. The Germans would not let any of them live if they even suspected that they knew anything about the tests.

All of those things were going through Hitch's head as he followed his sergeant through the street toward the wall.

"If we get separated you head for the jeeps." Troy ordered as Hitch ducked into a shadow behind him. "Moffitt and Tully are probably clear so all we have to worry about is getting clear ourselves."

Hitch nodded.

"Let's go." Troy whispered. He stepped out into a clear space and ran for the wall.

The guard stepped out from around a corner. His appearance was totally unexpected; there had been no sound to warn Troy or Hitch.

Troy was in the middle of the street when he heard the guard yell for him to halt. He froze in mid-step, turning his face to look behind him. The guard stared wide-eyed at the black face looking back at him. The shock only lasted a few seconds before the German raised his rifle and aimed at Troy.

"Sarge, go!"

The guard's finger was already on the trigger as he twisted to face the new threat. Bullets tore into the ground between Troy and Hitch. Hitch drew his knife and threw it even as he ducked for safety around the corner of the building beside him. The guard continued to fire as he fell to the ground with Hitch's knife buried deep in his chest.

Hitch took a quick look at the guard before looking for Troy. The sergeant was gone, lost in the shadows of the alley on the other side of the street. The shots had alerted the base and there were soldiers converging on the street from every direction. Hitch looked again but there was no sign of Troy. The sound of running feet turned the corner and Hitch saw a squad of soldiers coming to investigate the shooting. He stepped into the street and raised his hands. The blanket he still carried dropped at his feet.

The soldiers surrounded Hitch and began shouting commands at him. He kept his hands in the air and watched them warily. Finally an officer pushed his way through the crowd to restore order.

The officer studied Hitch without speaking. Hitch shifted nervously under the scrutiny. All around him Hitch could hear more soldiers searching the streets around them. He hoped that Troy had gotten clear before the search found him. When the soldiers returned and reported to the officer the officer nodded thoughtfully. Turning back to Hitch, he took a step toward him. The guards around Hitch immediately raised their weapons. Hitch raised his hands higher to show he was not a threat.

"Who are you? What are you doing on my base?"

The questions were in English and Hitch was too surprised to answer right away. Finally he found his voice and answered.


	10. Chapter 10

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 10

"What happened?" Moffitt asked as soon as Troy stepped out of the shadows around the jeeps.

"Where's Hitch?" Tully asked after searching the surrounding darkness for his the other private.

"We have to go!" Troy responded angrily. "The krauts know we are here. This entire mission is blown!" He threw his weapon onto the passenger seat and slid behind the wheel of his jeep. "Hitch got caught." He added in a softer tone. With an angry jab he started the jeep's engine and drove off, leaving the others to follow.

Tully threw Moffitt a questioning look before he started his jeep and followed Troy.

Moffitt turned to look back toward the German base and wondered if they would ever see their friend again. He reached into his shirt and fingered the original reports. Had they done all this only to lose their youngest member and blow the assignment?

Troy pulled into the cave behind the third jeep and climbed out. The strain of keeping out of sight, the hazardous night driving, and the responsibilities of command all seemed to settle on his shoulders like a heavy rock.

He worried about the mission; was it blown? He worried about his driver; was he still alive? If so, how long would he stay that way? Did he want him to be alive? He knew the Germans would question Hitch if he had been taken alive. Their secret depended on knowing what Hitch knew. He knew Hitch would try to protect the mission as best he could. It had always been understood that the mission came first. He also knew Hitch had protected him when they were discovered. Would his driver feel betrayed when they didn't come back to rescue him? Somehow Troy didn't believe that Hitch would blame them. They all knew the risks they took with every new assignment. Troy cursed the need for secrecy that this mission required. Going back for his missing man would be construed as disobeying orders.

"Troy?"

Moffitt drew him from his thoughts. He looked over to see the Brit and Tully watching him with worried eyes.

"A guard came out of nowhere and caught us crossing an open area. No, not us, he caught me crossing an open area." Troy corrected. "Hitch told me to run. He killed the guard with his knife. He covered me until I got clear." Troy swallowed to control his voice. "I thought he was right behind me. When I got to the wall he was nowhere in sight and there were soldiers running all over the place. I had to run or risk getting caught too."

"The shots?" The question hung in the air until Troy shook himself and answered.

"The guard's gun went off before Hitch could silence him."

Tully and Moffitt visibly relaxed.

"There were no other shots." The Brit ventured. "Perhaps he got away."

Troy shook his head in denial. "There were too many Germans. He had no place to hide. No, they caught him."

"Then that's it then. They'll know we have the test results, or at least they'll know we know about the tests."

Troy nodded miserably. "And they'll consider Hitch a spy and we can't go back after him."

"He'll be shot."

"Yeah."

"Maybe not."

Troy and Moffitt looked at Tully with grief stricken faces. "Tully" Troy said.

"Maybe not." Tully repeated stubbornly. "Hitch has already proven that he can think fast on his feet. What if he can convince them that we don't know anything about the tests? He was never near the office and the tests are finished according to the reports you found."

"All true Tully, but what could he tell them that they would believe? He'll have to have some excuse for being on the base. They are going to be extra suspicious about anything right now. I'm afraid that the base commander is going to err on the side of caution no matter how convincing Hitch may be." Moffitt explained.

"But if he doesn't know anything!"

"Jerry will not believe that he doesn't know anything." Moffitt sighed. "He would have to give them a very good story to even save the mission. I can't think of anything that he could say that could do that. As I said, they are going to be suspicious of every word he says. Saving himself," the Brit shook his head, "I'm afraid that that may not be possible."

"Sarge?" Tully turned to Troy.

"Moffitt's right." Troy confirmed. "That commander has orders to keep these tests a secret. I'm sure that he has been told not to take any chances. He'll question Hitch, maybe check his story, but in the end, he'll have Hitch shot. He won't risk making a mistake and letting his secret get out."

"We can go after him." Tully suggested without any heat.

"We can't! Don't you think I've already thought about that? Going after Hitch would be the equivalent of disobeying orders. We were ordered to keep our presence a secret."

"But they know we're here now."

"No, they know Hitch is here. Hopefully Hitch can convince them that he is acting alone. If they don't find out about the rest of us they may still believe they can keep their secret by silencing Hitch. Our mission will be safe."

"What about Hitch?" Tully asked in a defeated tone.

"There's nothing we can do Tully." Moffitt reached over and patted his driver on the shoulder. "Hitch will understand. We would have to make the same decision no matter which of us fell into German hands."

"Hitch said if anyone got caught because they were waiting for us it would be his fault." Tully spoke into the silence that had fallen over the trio.

"What? Why?" Troy demanded.

"He said he was the one who lost those rations. He said if the krauts found them and set a trap for us it would be on him."

"That was an accident." Troy growled. "It could have happened to any of us."

"That's not what you told Hitch." Tully replied quietly.

"I was angry and tired." Troy responded. "I didn't mean to blame him."

"You said if they were found the mission would be blown."

"And that was true." Troy replied. "But we don't know that they found them. They didn't seem to be waiting for us. He didn't need to feel responsible."

"You made him repack the jeep."

"To teach him to be more careful, not because I blamed him."

"But he did feel responsible."

"We should have known." Moffitt joined the conversation. "He has been quieter than normal lately. I'm afraid I overlooked it too, putting it down to the strain that we were all under. This makes as much sense." Moffitt looked around at the others. "You don't suppose he sacrificed himself out of guilt, do you?"

"No," Troy answered, "getting caught only made things worse, not better. He got caught because that guard spotted us and he couldn't get clear. Letting them take him alive may have been out of guilt." Troy paused to look at the others as his thoughts raced toward a probable conclusion. "Maybe Tully's right, maybe Hitch thinks he can still save the mission by convincing the Germans that we don't know anything."

"They'll interrogate him." Moffitt pointed out.

"Yeah, but Hitch is tough."

"Not that tough Troy. If they aren't satisfied with his answers they'll send him to the Gestapo. He will talk, everyone does sooner or later."

"I could shoot him."

Tully's quiet offer stopped the conversation.

"I don't want to… but I would to keep him from suffering in the hands of the Gestapo. I could do it to save him from that." Tully looked positively miserable, but determined at the same time.

"It wouldn't work Tully." Troy answered to Tully's relief. "If we kill him they would know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we know about the tests."

"The mission is blown." Moffitt repeated. "We can't save him without revealing our presence and we are compromised if he talks. Either way they will find out about us."

Troy squeezed Tully's arm and pushed him deeper into the cave. "No matter what we decided to do about Hitch we are going to have to stay here a day or two. Security is going to be increased again until they are satisfied that Hitch was alone. We can't risk a run for the caravan trail until things cool down." He looked around for something to take their minds off their missing member. "Did you two ever finish exploring this cave?"

"No." Moffitt admitted. "I guess we could do that now. It's still dark outside, the bats should be gone."

Troy nodded. "I'll stand watch while you two see what you can find. We could use a little luck right now. Maybe you'll find a back way out of here. With the Germans looking around we may need one."

"Moffitt nodded and reached for the flashlights. "Come along Tully, perhaps we'll find some ancient hidden treasures."

Tully nodded without much enthusiasm and accepted the offered light. He kept the beam pointed at the floor as he followed the sergeant deeper into the cave. He no longer had much interest in the splendors of the caverns.

Troy took his Thompson and returned to the entrance to stand guard. His thoughts kept going back to his driver. He felt guilty about his reaction to the lost rations. Allowing his own stress and exhaustion to color his words had been a mistake. It was easy to picture the ropes working loose and allowing the supplies to slip especially when one considered that they had been secured without the benefit of any light. The moon had been obscured by clouds during the stop in question. The security on the base had been minimal seeming to indicate that the Germans had not been expecting any intruders. Other than the usual wariness they had been quite lax in their preparedness. He fervently wished that he could take back the words he had uttered that night.

He leaned against some rocks and watched as the searchlights combed the desert. He had expected the Germans to conduct a thorough search of the desert but he hadn't expected them to search this far from the base until it got light. He watched as they combed a nearby valley from one end to the other. Finally the lights went out and the sound of German motors faded into the night. Troy was still watching for more search parties when he heard a noise behind him. He spun, ready to defend himself, but stopped as Moffitt called out to him.

"Easy Troy, it's only me." Moffitt held up both hands, palms out, in a placating gesture.

"Sorry, guess I'm just jumpy."

"We all are." The other sergeant responded. "This assignment has been hard on all of us."

"And I've been hard on everyone around me." Troy turned back to stare out into the desert again.

Moffitt didn't comment on Troy's admission. He stood quietly and marveled at the stars that twinkled above them. "It's a big world out there Troy." He finally said.

Troy turned to look at Moffitt, waiting for him to get to his point.

The British sergeant didn't seem to be in any hurry. He gazed at the stars a while longer while he gathered his thoughts. When he thought that he had them in order he began to speak.

"You know, of all of the units I could have ended up with, an American unit would have been my last guess. It's not unheard of for a British soldier to help an American unit, but to join them, that's not exactly a common occurrence."

"Are you sorry?"

"No." Moffitt smiled. "Not even a little bit Troy. If I had been offered a chance to join this team before I had actually met you, I may have turned it down. Not that I'm opposed to our American allies, quite the opposite really." He paused in thought. "I truly am grateful that your government decided to join the war effort on our side."

"We may have had some help making that decision." Troy reminded him.

"Yes, of course, Pearl Harbor." Moffitt shrugged. "I've always felt that your government would have come around anyway. You Americans have a way of jumping into a fight when you see an underdog. You have a strong sense of right and wrong and you are not afraid to fight for what you believe in. I like to think that you would have grown tired of the atrocities perpetrated by the Nazi's and come to our aid on your own."

"Maybe Doctor, but what's your point?"

"You're tired Troy, why don't you go get some rest while I stand guard?"

"Oh no, you're not going to just leave me hanging here. You have something to say Doctor, spit it out."

"It's just that we are a team Troy. I may not have planned to join you, but I did. So did Tully and Hitch."

Troy flinched at the mention of his driver.

"We count on one another," Moffitt continued, "but we all realize that the mission comes first. I am certain that Hitch is not sitting around blaming us for leaving him behind. And I am just as certain that he will do everything in his power to salvage the mission."

"How? They know we're here."

"They know Hitch is here. Remember what Tully said? Hitch thinks fast on his feet. Don't sell him short Troy. He may be able to convince them that he is alone and knows nothing about the tests."

"They'll kill him anyway."

"Perhaps, but he won't have died in vain."


	11. Chapter 11

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 11

"Who are you and why are you here?"

Hitch sat in a chair facing a very angry base commander. "I told you, I'm a deserter. I came here to surrender to your troops. I want to be sent to a POW camp."

"Surrender? Why did you not surrender when my guard told you to halt? You killed him."

"He took a shot at me!" Hitch yelped indignantly. "I was trying to surrender but he opened fire!"

The officer didn't look convinced so Hitch tried again.

"He saw me in the alley." Hitch began. "I raised my hands but I guess he thought I was armed. He started shooting and I had to defend myself. I want to surrender not get myself killed." Hitch tried to look as innocent as he could. "I surrendered to the others when they came."

"You were surrounded."

"I didn't try to hide or run."

Major Koft studied the young soldier before him. He wanted to believe the prisoner. Admitting that he had been wrong when he sent Captain Dietrich away didn't sit well with him. If the prisoner was telling the truth then there was no reason to report his presence to headquarters.

His first reaction when informed about the young soldier's capture had been concern for his secret. He had rushed to his office to find everything just as he had left it. As a precaution he had left a paper lying across one corner of the envelope containing the report, it was still there. None of the locks had been jimmied and none of the windows were broken. His relief had turned to suspicion. Had the intruder been after the report? Was it possible that they had intercepted him on his way to the office? He faced the prisoner with more questions than answers. Fortunately, the prisoner seemed inclined to answer the questions.

"My guards tell me you were trying to leave the base. If you wanted to surrender, why attempt to leave?"

"I was going to surrender Major but I got to thinking that maybe it would be better to try if from outside the base. The actions of your guard seem to prove I was right. I tried to surrender to him and he tried to shoot me. I was going to spend the night outside and approach the gate tomorrow. I even had a blanket to keep me warm until morning."

The blond soldier tried to smile as he explained his plans. The Major thought he looked nervous, but considering the circumstances, a little nervousness seemed appropriate. He paused to ask about the blanket. One of the soldiers who had captured the prisoner confirmed the presence of a blanket. "If you were planning to surrender outside, why did you come in in the first place? And how did you get in?" The Major demanded.

"I wasn't sure about a plan to begin with." Hitch explained. "I didn't know how I was going to get onto the base to give myself up. So when I found an opportunity to get a ride with your men I took it. It wasn't until after I got here that I decided that surrendering from inside the base might not be such a good idea. That's when I decided to wait outside."

"You rode in with my men?"

"Yes."

"Which ones? Who brought you onto my base without my permission?"

"I don't know their names Major. And to be fair, they didn't know I was in the back of that truck."

"Explain." The officer demanded.

"I caught a ride in the back of one of your tucks." Hitch explained. "I saw this convoy stopped out on the road and there was no one around the trucks. I thought I could ride in with them and surrender, but then I thought better of it and tried to get out."

"What convoy and what truck?"

"The convoy that arrived today. I hopped in the last truck in line. They were stopped for something and I crawled in while they weren't moving."

"What was being transported in that truck?"

"Ammunition." Hitch answered. "Grenades, bullets, 88 shells."

"And did you try to hide in any of the other trucks? Did you look in any of them?" The Major asked suspiciously.

"No." Hitch answered truthfully. "Only that last one. I figured it was the furthest one from your men. I wasn't sure how they would react to my presence and, well, I was nervous."

"Where was this?"

Hitch hesitated knowing that the cave was nearby. Finally he shrugged. "I don't know. I can take you there but I can't give you the exact coordinates."

"But the trucks were stopped when you climbed in?"

"Yes."

The Major summoned the head of the convoy and questioned him extensively. All the while they spoke he watched the prisoner for any indication that he understood what was being said. The prisoner didn't react to anything that was said, not even when he suggested that the only solution would be to kill the prisoner.

"Why are you deserting?" The question caught Hitch off guard since he had only been half paying attention to what was going on around him. He hadn't expected them to believe him let alone ask why.

"I've been in the desert for a while now." He began. "And I've been wounded more than once. Every time I get wounded I keep expecting them to send me home, but they just keep sending me back into battle. I've had enough Major; I don't want to get shot again. Maybe he next time I won't survive. Let somebody else take the risk, let them be the hero, I want no part of it! I'll take my chances in a nice quiet prison camp for the duration."

"Where were you wounded?"

"You mean what battle?"

"No, where are your wounds?"

"Oh." Hitch exclaimed. "I caught some shrapnel in the belly that lodged next to a major artery. I was lucky that I was close to a field hospital and I made it to the surgeon in time. I've been shot in the leg, in the arm a couple of times. The shoulder. I had a chest wound that nearly did me in. I even got shot in the head one time. That was a close one." Hitch let his voice rise in indignation. "A guy can only take so much! What do they want from me anyway? Look, I can show you the scars."

"Scars mean you survived." The Major pointed out. "They are not something to worry about." He did however allow Hitch to pull up his shirt to show him the shrapnel scar.

"The ladies don't like them." Hitch explained. He bit his tongue, thinking the comment would sound out of character but it was done.

"You worry about women? Women love scars on a hero."

"Not the ladies I like." Hitch responded. "High class women don't like anything that's not perfect."

"And you think you have a chance with those women?" The Major took another look at his prisoner. "I suppose you are good looking in a primitive sort of way."

"Thanks, I think." Hitch smirked. "So how about it Major? Will you send me to a nice quiet POW camp until this crazy war is over?"

"I still have a few questions." The Major replied sternly. "If you answer my questions I may consider it. Where did you come from?"

Hitch named a base on the other side of the mountain range.

"But how did you get here?"

"I took a jeep." Hitch explained. "It was sitting next to the motor pool and no one was around. I needed transportation and the Army has lots of jeeps. I grabbed a few extra cans of water and gasoline and a bunch of rations. I broke through the gate and took off. I drove as fast as I could toward your lines. I drove so fast that I lost some of my supplies. A couple of cartons of rations fell out, I don't know what else."

Hitch knew they had found the missing rations when the officer reacted to his admission.

"And no one saw you on this road?"

"I was driving pretty fast." Hitch repeated. "I kept an eye out for dust and I was able to duck before your patrols saw me. I saw a column on that road too but it didn't see me."

"And your people did not try to find you? Don't they hunt down deserters?"

"Of course they do." Hitch answered. "That's why I was in such a hurry. I guess I just outran them is all. If they find me they will try to take me back. I don't want to go back."

"I see."

"So how about it Major, can I go to one of your POW camps?"

"We shall see Private, perhaps."

"Great! When do I leave?"

"What's your rush?"

"The MPs Major, they might come after me."

"I doubt that they would chase you this far Private. But if they do, we will see them and stop them."

"Promise? After all, you didn't see me."

"You will not be returning to your base, I promise."

"Thank you Major, I sure appreciate that. I have to admit, I was worried there for a minute."

"You will be taken to a cell, rest for now, I may have more questions later."

"Sure Major, I am kind of tired. I slept in an abandoned building near where I was caught but your men kept going by and waking me up." Hitch allowed the guards to escort him to his cell. He tried to look around without arousing any suspicion. To his relief he didn't see any sign of the others. He hoped that they didn't come back for him. If he could convince the Major that he was just a deserter looking for a safe place to ride out the war he might be able to salvage the mission. He had no illusions about his own intended fate. The Major's promise that he would not be returning to the American base had sounded understandably ominous.

"What do you think?" Major Koft asked his second-in-command. "Do you believe him?

"I find it hard to believe that he traveled that road without being spotted." The other officer declared.

"Yet he knew about the rations we found on that very road. If he didn't lose them how would he know about them?"

"I can't explain it." The captain admitted.

"His scars were real."

"Yes, the one he showed you looked real enough. Would you like me to have the guards check for others?"

"I suppose we must be thorough." The Major sighed. "Check for more scars and keep me informed. Have Lieutenant Beil ask the prisoner some questions. I want you to oversee the interrogation. Inform me immediately if any of his answers change."

"Yes sir. How far do you want the lieutenant to go to get his answers?"

"Don't kill him." The Major paused to consider the question. "No permanent damage. If we have to turn him over to the Gestapo they will need something to work with. Even under their expert care a half-dead prisoner could succumb to his injuries before he breaks. I have no wish to anger the Gestapo."

"I'll inform the lieutenant."

After the captain left the major paced his office. If the prisoner turned out to be telling the truth then his secret was still safe. Of course he would not allow the soldier to live, just as a precaution, but his secret would be safe. He noted the time and wondered how long it would take the lieutenant to find out what he wanted to know.

Hitch knew what they wanted when the two officers stopped in front of his cell. When the guards rushed him he offered no resistance. His hands were tied behind his back and he was led from the building. The sky was just starting to lighten as night gave way to day.

The room where they took him looked like an office. The chair was pulled away from the desk and he was tied to it. He repeated his earlier answers again and again as he was slapped and punched. Before when answering the Major's questions he had stuck as close to the truth as possible to make it easier to remember his answers. That precaution proved useful as his head began to swim from the blows. Time after time they demanded answers to the same questions he had already answered. He struggled to keep his replies consistent. Finally, sore and exhausted, he allowed the darkness to overtake him.

"His answers remained the same." The captain reported to Major Koft.

"He is still alive?"

"Yes sir. The lieutenant hit him with an open hand and a fist but the damage is not permanent. He should recover fully."

"Good, good, keep an eye on him; I may have more questions for him later."

The captain returned to the lieutenant and ordered the prisoner returned to his cell.


	12. Chapter 12

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 12

"There he is." Moffitt was watching the base through binoculars while lying on a hill a distance from the front gate.

"How does he look?" Troy asked as he scrambled to drop next to the British sergeant.

"They've definitely been asking him questions." The Brit answered.

Troy cringed when he saw his drivers face. The bruises were easy to see even from a distance. The blond was stumbling between two burly guards who held his bound arms and pulled him along.

"He appears to have been beaten but he is still walking partially on his own. It could have been a lot worse."

` "Yeah, that's something anyway." Troy agreed soberly.

"They don't seem to be worried about our presence." Moffitt lowered his glasses to face Troy. "Perhaps Tully was correct; perhaps Hitch did manage to convince them that he was on his own."

"I don't know Moffitt, I wish I did."

"Allow me to go in and see if I can find out anything. If they aren't watching for us I may be able to get information about what is happening."

"It could be a trap. Taking Hitch across the compound in daylight might be a ploy to get us to come to the rescue." Troy watched as Hitch was escorted from one building to another. He wanted to go after him but it was against orders to even let Moffitt go in to look around.

"Troy?"

Still Troy hesitated. He watched as his driver stumbled and caught himself. "All right, go in, but you get out of there if you get so much as a whiff of a trap."

The other sergeant nodded with relief plain on his face.

"We're violating orders." Troy warned.

"And who is going to tell on us?"

"I thought you were the one who liked to follow the rules."

The Brit smiled. "Perhaps I've been corrupted. Working with this unit has changed my perspective on certain matters." He paused to make eye contact with Troy. "And I want you to know that I consider it a change for the better."

"Well don't let it get you killed."

"I'll be careful Troy but it makes sense to find out if our mission is compromised." Moffitt gave Troy a small nod and headed for the jeep. He returned a few minutes later dressed in full Arab costume right down to the sandals on his feet.

"Don't look now but your feet are showing." Troy warned only half joking.

Moffitt looked down at his white feet. While the sun had burned his face and arms to a deep brown his feet had been covered by his boots. "I brought a dye along to darken the skin on my feet. Whoever made up our supplies thought of everything. I'll walk to the base so my feet and clothing will be suitably dusty."

"Remember to slouch; you're too tall for an Arab." Troy warned after giving Moffitt a critical once over.

"Right."

The two sergeants fell silent as Moffitt applied the dye to his feet.

"There, all finished. How do they look?"

"Like feet."

"I don't think they will be expecting a lone Arab. As soon as I hear anything I will get out of there."

"You'd better." Troy growled. "And Moffitt, if anything goes wrong, you're on your own. Tully and I won't have any choice but to try to get the information back to headquarters."

"Understood."

"And don't try to rescue Hitch on your own."

"Not unless I'm sure our mission has been blown."

"Not even then." Troy warned. "We can't run the risk of you being captured too. You know what's in those reports."

Moffitt nodded reluctantly. "Of course, you're right. I won't try anything alone."

The American sergeant nodded, taking a closer look at the disguise. "You look like an Arab, just be careful." Moffitt smiled. "I'll be here when you get back." Troy promised.

"You be careful too. Don't let anyone sneak up on you." Moffitt walked away, making his way to the road that led to the base.

Troy watched his slow progress as he crossed the distance to the German base. The guards at the gate were watching everyone coming and going. He saw a guard stop Moffitt and search him for weapons. Holding his breath he waited as the guard finished his search and waved Moffitt through the gate. Troy sighed in relief and settled in to wait.

Lowering his glasses Troy wiped a sleeve across his face to absorb the sweat that was running into his eyes. The sun was baking the back of his neck but he refused to leave his vantage point. Moffitt had been gone for nearly two hours and he was starting to worry. The base still looked quiet and that was the only reason he could find to remain calm. He wiped the sweat away again and put the glasses back to his eyes.

His eyes burned from staring at the base. By now he knew the routine of the guard so well that he could tell by his body language when he was interested in something or when he was just looking around because he was bored. He could predict when the guard would shift his weight from one foot to the other before he did it. It was strange but he could almost feel the guard's urge for a cigarette. Or perhaps he was the one who needed the smoke, something to calm his nerves and make the wait more bearable.

Moffitt emerged while he was resting his eyes. The hunched figure was through the gate and walking briskly toward the hills when Troy put the glasses to his eyes.

He heard a shout and immediately focused on the guard. The soldier was shouting at another Arab who was trying to push his way through a group of goat herders. Troy saw Moffitt glance back and then keep walking. Troy watched his progress until Moffitt turned the bend in the road and was out of sight of the base. Taking one last look to make sure that Moffitt wasn't being followed Troy rushed to meet him.

Moffitt went straight to the jeep and started stripping the Arab clothing off. He looked up at Troy with a sense of urgency.

"What's going on?" Troy demanded.

"I'll tell you on the way. Right now we have to get back to Tully and the jeeps." Moffitt slid into the passenger seat without even changing into his boots.

Feeling the urgency Troy slid behind the wheel and started the jeep.

"Don't forget to drop the rake."

"It's down." Troy replied. "What happened?"

"Hitch is going to show the camp commander where he parked his jeep."

"Why?"

"From what I can tell he's trying to prove he's who he says he is."

"Who did he say he was?"

"A deserter looking to spend the rest of the war in a POW camp. I overheard several officers discussing his story. Apparently they have confirmed enough of what he told them that the commander is leaning toward believing him. According to one officer he is going to show them where he parked the jeep he used to get here. The officer says that if they find the jeep the commander will have enough proof to confirm his story."

"We need the supplies in that jeep. We'll have to move them to the other jeeps."

"We'll have to hurry and we can't leave any evidence of the other jeeps or our presence."

"Is there somewhere else we can hide them? Somewhere close?"

"I know of a few small caves. We'll have to separate the jeeps but they'll be close to each other so we can keep an eye on them." Moffitt was going over all he had heard. "Hitch apparently told them that he took the jeep from his base and left it here to catch a ride with that convoy."

"What else did he say?"

"They were talking about his wounds. It sounds like he used his reputation as a ladies' man to justify his desertion. I'm not real clear on that. The officers were laughing about the way he looks now. They said he wouldn't impress any of the ladies with that face."

"A ladies man?"

Troy's tone made Moffitt look closer. "What is it Troy?"

Troy squinted his eyes as he began to form a plan. "Moffitt, I need you to get back into that costume. I think I have a way to get Hitch back."


	13. Chapter 13

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 13

Tully was waiting with the jeeps when the sergeants returned.

"Tully, we have to move the supplies into our jeep! We need to hurry!"

Holding his questions, Tully ran to do Troy's bidding. He threw the rope into the back of his jeep and started to transfer the supplies. Troy and Moffitt began to throw other supplies into Troy's jeep. Between the three of them they had most of the supplies into the other jeeps before Troy got done explaining what he had in mind.

"Not all of them." Moffitt stopped Tully from reaching for the last of the rations. "Hitch claimed to have driven this jeep here. They will be expecting to find some evidence of that. If we leave a few of the rations it may help convince them."

"Are you thinking that they found the rations we lost?"

"There was no mention of rations but I don't think we can rule it out. Besides, rations would be something he would have grabbed before he ran. Who deserts without taking food with them?"

"Deserts?" Tully asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Hitch claimed to be a deserter." Moffitt explained to his driver. "We think he's trying to convince them that he was alone. You were right, he does think fast on his feet."

"We can explain everything later. We need to get these jeeps out of here. Tully, you stay here and clean up this cave. Don't leave any evidence of our presence. Wipe out the tracks from our two jeeps."

"Right Sarge."

"We won't be long." Moffitt added.

"I'll be here Sarge."

"Don't call me Sarge." Moffitt growled. He smiled when he saw Tully grin.

"We'll get him back Tully."

"I know Doc, I trust you. You'd better get going." Moffitt nodded and rushed over to his jeep to show Troy where to hide the vehicles.

"This way Troy." Moffitt was again in Arab garb as he led the way back to the large cavern. They weren't going in the front entrance this time. The British sergeant was taking them to the back entrance that he had discovered while exploring with Tully. It wasn't large enough to drive a jeep through but it was large enough to make it on foot.

"Remember the plan." Troy instructed. "We'll use the tunnels and the ledge you found to move around and fool the Germans into thinking we have them surrounded."

"You'll have to stay out of sight." Moffitt warned. "And you'd better use the old rifles in case you have to fire a shot. They would recognize the sound of our weapons."

"Maybe not inside the cave but we'll do it your way just to be safe." Troy responded.

They made their way to the main cavern. Tully had brushed the cavern floor to erase their tracks and was standing watch at the entrance.

"Here Tully." Troy handed him a flashlight. "You use the tunnels you found and I'll hide on the ledge. You know what to do."

"Right Sarge."

"I'll be waiting in the back of the cavern." Moffitt explained for Tully's benefit. I'll light a torch to ruin their night vision, that should help keep your identities a secret. When I need you to reveal your presence I will call out an Arab name, that will be you first Troy, then Tully."

"Make it convincing." Troy told him. "They'll have to believe Hitch's story if they're going to fall for ours."

"I will make believers out of those infidels." Moffitt replied in a guttural voice.

"Sarge, I hear something." Tully called from the entrance.

"Get in position." Troy called.

"Here it is Major, right where I said it was." Hitch's voice echoed in the chamber as he led the Germans into the cave. They all paused at the sight of the jeep.

"So it is private." Major Koft replied. "So far your story has checked out completely."

Hitch uncrossed the fingers on the hands behind his back. "Now do you believe me? I just want to go to a POW camp until this war is over."

"This war is over for you private, I can promise you that."

"Thank you Major." Hitch caught the double meaning but chose to ignore it. It was what he had expected right from the beginning. His part required that he play the clueless deserter until the end. He had no doubt that the major intended to have him shot but it would be worth it if he could save the mission. He was glad that the others had gotten away. He hoped they made it back safely.

"I believe we can consider this mystery solved." Major Koft interrupted Hitch's thoughts. He looked into the jeep and noted the rations loosely thrown in the back. He was turning away when Moffitt appeared. "Who are you?"

Hitch was too surprised to hide his reaction to seeing Moffitt before the major saw it. He looked back at Moffitt with a suspicious gleam in his eyes.

"I am Hasid Jamul Kaaba." Moffitt answered in German.

"What are you doing here?" The major asked after recovering from hearing his native language coming from the Arab. He motioned for his men to cover the Arab.

"Don't be a fool infidel." Moffitt growled warningly in his most threatening tone. "Do you think me foolish enough to come here alone?"

The major paused, taken back by both the tone and the words. "I see no one else." He answered as he glanced around the cavern.

"Jamal." Moffitt called.

Troy, on the ledge, kicked a rock off the ledge to reveal his presence. He immediately changed positions.

The Germans turned toward the sound.

"Caliph." Moffitt called again.

Tully, in the mouth of a tunnel, grunted in reply.

The Germans turned to face the new threat and shifted nervously.

"Zaid."

Troy bumped the barrel of his rifle against a rock.

The Germans turned back to look his way.

"Baal."

Tully made another noise from the other entrance to the tunnel.

"Must I go on?" Moffitt asked in the same guttural tone. "You and your people are surrounded. None of you will leave here alive unless I wish it."

"I have more men outside." The major replied smugly.

"As have I." Moffitt answered just as smugly. "We also have explosives taken from this machine. Do you wish to die for one such as this?" Moffitt made a dismissive gesture toward Hitchcock.

The major looked from the Arab to the prisoner. "What do you mean? What does he have to do with your presence here?"

Moffitt sent Hitch a withering glance. "Do you speak his language?"

"Yes." The major answered.

"Good. He does not speak our language and we do not speak his, so you will translate for us. Ask him what he did before he fled his own people."

The major hesitated before he turned to Hitch. "He says to ask you what you did before you ran. What did you do?"

"Nothing." Hitch answered. "I took the jeep and took off, that's all."

"Are you sure?" The major asked. "This Arab seems to think that you did more than that."

Hitch shook his head. "I don't know what he's talking about." He looked at Moffitt for a clue as to what to say or do.

"Has he admitted it?" Moffitt demanded angrily.

"Admitted what?" Major Koft asked.

"Before he left his people he violated one of our women. She is shamed according to our law." Moffitt explained.

"He says you raped a woman, one of their women." The major translated for Hitch.

"He's lying!" Hitch reacted without thinking. Too late he realized what Moffitt was trying to do. Thinking fast he tried to cover his mistake. "You can't turn me over to them Major! I surrendered to you! You promised to send me to a POW camp." The desperation in his tone was convincing even if it wasn't for the reason the major thought. "You can't give me to them, you just can't!" Hitch pleaded.

"Why should I risk my men to save a rapist?"

"You know what they'll do to me."

"Yes, I'm afraid I do private." The major answered with a smile. "I have heard what these savages do to anyone who messes with their women."

"Give him to us and you and your man may go free. We have no problem with you." Moffitt urged.

"What will you do to him?"

"That is not your concern." Moffitt growled. "The woman he shamed was to be my wife. I claim his life in payment."

"You will kill him?"

"Yes." Moffitt answered defiantly.

"That's all I wanted to know." The officer nodded. He turned back to Hitch and smiled.

"I'm sorry Private but my first duty is to my men. As I promised, the war is over for you."

"Major, you can't!" Hitch pleaded as he was shoved toward Moffitt.

"It is done Private. Actually this solves my problem too. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with you. Good luck Private, you're going to need it." Turning back to Moffitt the major smiled. "I believe we are done here. He is yours. May we go?"

Moffitt pointed his rifle at Hitch and nodded at the major. "Go, and do not try to return. My men will be watching."

"We have no reason to return." The major replied.

"What about the tests?" The Captain asked.

"Our secret is safe." Major Koft answered. "Even if he came for our information he will not deliver it now. These Arabs will see to that. We are done here Captain. Let's go."

"Yes sir." The captain ordered his men to return to their vehicles.

The major looked back to see the Arab pulling Hitch roughly by the arm toward the darkness in the rear of the cave. Soon the sounds of the German vehicles leaving faded into the distance.

Moffitt rushed to the entrance to make sure that they had truly gone. "All clear."

Troy rushed to his driver to cut him free. "Are you all right Hitch?"

"Yeah Sarge." Hitch nodded tiredly. "Why'd you come back? I had them convinced that I was a deserter and that they're secrets were safe."

"We know, that's why we came back." Troy answered. "We had to know if they suspected anything so Moffitt went in to find out. When he heard the story you told them we came up with this plan to get you back."

"They believed me Sarge. The mission was safe."

"Yeah, they did. You did good Hitch."

"Then why risk it?"

Troy looked at his driver and held back the first explanation he had intended to give, not wanting to reveal his true feelings. "Because we had to be sure you didn't talk Hitch."

"They were convinced Sarge. They weren't going to ask me any more questions. I wasn't going to talk."

"We couldn't take that chance Hitch." Troy replied shortly. "Come on, we have to get out of here in case they come back."

"They could be watching the entrance Sarge. If they see you they'll know what happened." Hitch warned.

"No they won't." Troy answered confidently. "We're going out the back door. The jeeps are hidden on the other side of these hills."

Tully walked up behind Hitch and patted him on the back. "Welcome back."

"Thanks Tully."

"Ready to go?" Moffitt asked. Hitch looked at the others and nodded. He followed Moffitt as the sergeant climbed nimbly over the rocks in their path.

"Tully, check the jeeps, make sure no one found them." Troy ordered.

Tully nodded and disappeared into the rocks.

"That commander believed me Sarge." Hitch repeated. "They don't know we got the information. As far as they know we don't even know about the tests."

"That's good." Troy replied. "Captain Boggs will be glad to hear that."

"You going to tell him I got caught?"

"I have to Hitch. We have spies working for us too, they'll get word to our side that the major captured a prisoner."

"Then I'm in trouble?"

"The mission was a success."

"Are we sure? I mean, I think they believed me, but is that good enough?"

"The major sounded like he was convinced." Moffitt replied for Troy. "He said that turning you over to me, to us, solved both his problems. It got rid of you and protected his secret. He said even if you know about the tests you won't be able to get the information to your people. He thinks you are going to die."

"I don't think he would have let me live no matter what." Hitch admitted.

"He didn't plan on it. He was going to have you shot just as a precaution."

"That's what I thought."

"Why did you surrender?" Moffitt asked.

"They saw us and shouted an alarm. I killed the guard but the damage was done. I knew if they saw Sarge they would know what we were after. I figured that with my clean face I had a chance to convince them that I was there for another reason. I couldn't get away, they reacted too fast. Fighting my way out wouldn't have helped…so I decided to try to save the mission."

"You wanted to save the mission?"

"I was going to get caught anyway." Hitch explained. "It was the only thing I could think of that would make a difference. If I was going to die I wanted it to count for something."

"You must have been pretty convincing." Troy remarked.

"I stuck to the truth as much as possible."

"How did your scars come into it?"

Hitch lowered his head. "I told them that I was tired of getting wounded and I wanted out. I showed them my scars to prove I was really wounded. Who knew those scars would come in handy?"

"And how did the women come into the conversation?" Troy asked with a smirk.

Hitch blushed. "I told them the ladies didn't like scars."

Troy laughed. "Like you haven't used your injuries to get sympathy."

"I told them the upper class ladies preferred perfection." Hitch smiled at Troy's reaction.

"And the jeep?" Moffitt continued.

"I was pretty sure that I had them convinced but I had to be sure. I gave them the jeep to convince them that I got on the base the way I said I did." Hitch looked over at Troy. "I had to do it Sarge. I needed to be sure that they believed me. I didn't expect you guys to still be here but I was hoping that you left the jeep."

"I wouldn't worry about it." Troy replied. "I think headquarters will be okay with sacrificing a jeep to get the job done."

They fell silent as they waited for Tully to return with the report on the jeeps. Hitch fidgeted the entire time they waited. "They found the rations I lost." He finally blurted out. "I thought they had but I wasn't sure until I mentioned losing them. The way the major reacted confirmed it for me."

"You told them about the rations?"

"I told them I came that way and I don't think they believed me. I figured that if they had found them my admitting it would help convince them. I think it did."

"Perhaps losing them wasn't bad luck after all." Moffitt suggested.

"It was an accident. It could have happened to any of us." Troy responded. He looked over to see the surprise on his driver's face. "I was wrong to jump on you." He admitted. "We were all tired and fumbling around in the dark. It's a wonder we didn't lose more stuff the way we were going. Forget it."

Tully returned and reported that the jeeps appeared to be undisturbed.

"Shall we go find a medical kit?" Moffitt asked.

"Sounds good Doc." Hitch replied with a sigh.


	14. Chapter 14

**The Secret Raid**

By:AliasCWN

Chapter 14

The Rat Patrol arrived back at their base a full day ahead of schedule. Troy and Moffitt went to deliver their film and the original report on the test results to Captain Boggs. Troy reported everything that happened, including Hitch's capture and his efforts to save the mission.

"Why did you hang around to rescue him?" The captain demanded. "Darn it Troy, I know how you feel about your men but you had your orders, keep your presence a secret."

"Our orders were to make sure the Germans didn't find out we knew about their tests." Troy stated.

"And by rescuing Hitchcock you only confirmed that we do know."

"No sir." Troy argued. "We went back in to find out if they suspected anything. They didn't. Hitch had them convinced that he knew nothing about the tests and that he was on a purely personal mission." Troy went on to explain Hitch's story and the lengths he had gone to to convince the German commander that he was telling the truth.

"When they left Sir I overheard the major telling one of his officers that their secret was safe. He planned to kill Hitch just to be certain but he thinks we took care of that little detail for him. I don't think he was planning on telling his superiors about Hitch."

"Are you sure about that?"

"That's what he said."

"And you don't think it was said for your benefit?"

"I don't think he cared who heard but I don't believe that it was said for my benefit."

"All right sergeants, you can go. I want to see Hitchcock in my office as soon as possible."

"Yes sir. We'll send him over after the doctors are finished patching up his injuries." Troy replied.

"Are they serious?"

"No sir. Mostly slaps and punches. A split lip and a few cuts on his face. Some swelling. Maybe a few cracked ribs but I don't think any were broken." Moffitt listed the injuries.

"Okay, send him over." Captain Boggs repeated.

Hitch was in the captain's office for more than two hours. Troy was getting antsy by the time he finally walked into their shared room. "Well?" He demanded.

"The captain chewed me out for surrendering." Hitch began. "I told him it was either that or go down fighting and blow the mission."

"What did he say to that?" Moffitt asked.

"He said he understood and he would tell headquarters that."

"Did you tell him it was my fault?" Troy asked.

"No. Why would I?"

"Because it was. I'm the one that guard spotted."

Hitch shrugged. "It doesn't matter who they saw, I'm the one who surrendered. The captain wasn't happy that I got caught but he said he couldn't complain too much because the Germans still don't know why I was really there. They got a report from one of our spies that said the major didn't report my capture to Berlin. He didn't mention any trouble at all."

"So you're not in trouble?" Moffitt asked.

"Not unless headquarters has a problem with it. The captain said he didn't expect that to happen though because he didn't think they would complain about a successful mission. He also said that if they do say anything he will remind them that they didn't believe that we could pull it off in the first place. He said since they didn't think it was possible they shouldn't have any problem with our methods since they were successful." Hitch was smiling as he finished his explanation.

The others laughed.

"It sure was lucky for you that we had to go back in to see if the Germans were suspicious." Tully eyed his sergeants as he explained the reason they had gone back. "Doc says they were planning on shooting you to keep you quiet."

"Yeah, I heard that." Hitch admitted. "But I didn't expect you guys to come back."

"We had to...for the mission." Troy responded.

Hitch nodded and smiled. "I'm glad you did…even if it was for the mission."

"Anybody hungry?" Troy asked.

Tully and Moffitt both got to their feet to head for the mess hall. They all looked at Hitch expectantly.

"You guys go ahead; I'm more tired than hungry. Besides I don't think I have my strength back yet. I'm just going to stay here and sleep."

"Are you sure?" Troy asked.

"Yeah Sarge, I'm sure. My jaw isn't up to chewing whatever they're having anyway."

"All right, we'll see you when we get back."

"I'll be here." Hitch answered with a yawn.

"We'll bring you something back." Tully promised. "Maybe something soft."

"Okay."

Out in the hall Moffitt was watching as Troy looked back into the room.

"He'll be all right. He's just tired and we didn't give him much chance to rest and recover on our way back. He took quite a beating." Moffitt assured the other sergeant.

"I know…We almost lost him Moffitt."

"But we didn't." Moffitt pointed out. "There is one thing I'm still not sure about though."

"Yeah? What's that?"

"Just when did you decide that we needed to be sure that the Germans didn't suspect anything?"

"After Hitch got caught."

"Yes, but before or after you decided to rescue him?"

"What are you getting at?"

"Oh nothing really, I suppose I already know the answer."

"We had to know Moffitt."

"I agree, it was the right choice."

"It all worked out."

"Yes it did."

"Headquarters is happy."

"Yes they are."

Troy eyed Moffitt suspiciously. "What are you thinking?"

"Oh not much, just that I made a wise choice when I joined this team. We work well together."

"Yeah we do." Troy agreed.

"Let's eat." Tully said as he joined them in the hall.

Hitch closed his eyes as the footsteps faded down the hall. Little by little his body relaxed. The bruises had kept him from getting a good night's rest on the return trip but now he had a soft bed to cushion the aches. The doctors had given him some pills to help him sleep but he was reluctant to take them. He was afraid he would have a nightmare and not be able to wake up.

In his mind he replayed Troy's reaction to Tully's not so subtle reference as to why they had come back. He suspected that it had been more than the mission that had kept them around but he couldn't be sure. Not that it mattered; if they hadn't come back he wouldn't have blamed them. He pictured Troy's reaction again and smiled. Maybe, just maybe, it was more than the mission.


End file.
